14th Amendment

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Conservative Legal Scholars Argue Trump Is Disqualified for Office Under 14th Amendment

"Donald Trump cannot be president—cannot run for president, cannot become president, cannot hold office—unless two-thirds of Congress decides to grant him amnesty for his conduct on January 6."

https://www.commondreams.org/news/conservative-scholars-trump-disqualified?

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Court arguments begin in effort to bar Trump from the presidential ballot under ‘insurrection’ clause The campaign enters a new phase this week as hearings to bar former President Donald Trump from the ballot begin in two states and might end up reaching the U.S. Supreme Court. Read more.

Why this matters: Dozens of cases citing Section Three of the 14th Amendment have been filed in recent months, but the ones happening this week in Colorado and Minnesota seem the most important, according to legal experts.   Whether the judges keep Trump on the ballot or boot him, their rulings are likely to be swiftly appealed, eventually to the U.S. Supreme Court. The nation’s highest court has never ruled on the Civil War-era provision in the 14th Amendment that prohibits those who swore an oath to uphold the constitution and then “engaged in insurrection” against it from holding higher office.   Trump has castigated the lawsuits as “election interference.” His lawyers contend that none of the issues are simple in a provision of the Constitution that hasn’t been used in 150 years.

Related coverage ➤ Federal judge reimposes limited gag order in Donald Trump’s 2020 election interference case Pence’s early exit from the presidential campaign offers a reminder of Trump’s grip on the GOP

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Donald Trump Handed Loss Within Minutes of Trial Starting

A Colorado judge handed Donald Trump a loss just minutes into his disqualification trial Monday morning.

https://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-handed-loss-colorado-trial-1839259

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Expert says Trump could have defended Capitol on Jan. 6 as disqualification case enters new phase

DENVER (AP) — Then-President Donald Trump could have mobilized the National Guard and other federal agencies to protect the U.S. Capitol once violence broke out on Jan. 6, 2021, a law professor testified Tuesday as a case to bar the former president from the 2024 ballot moved into a new phase.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-ballot-14th-amendment-colorado-6a8528813e29c9f45a0bb4972369e97e?

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Extremism expert testifies on Trump’s ‘violent’ rhetoric in Colorado 14th Amendment trial

History of statements regarding extremist groups, violence towards protesters cited as evidence of insurrection

https://floridaphoenix.com/2023/11/01/extremism-expert-testifies-on-trumps-violent-rhetoric-in-colorado-14th-amendment-trial/?

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Minnesota justices appear skeptical that states should decide Trump’s eligibility for the ballot

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Minnesota Supreme Court justices appeared skeptical Thursday that states have the authority to block former President Donald Trump from the ballot, with some suggesting that Congress is best positioned to decide whether his role in the 2021 U.S. Capitol attack should prevent him from running.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-14th-amendment-2024-ballot-5cb50c1ee6432efe72fd643c31dec474?

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Can Trump be on the ballot in 2024? It can hinge on the meaning of ‘insurrection’

DENVER (AP) — Can former President Donald Trump run for his old job again after his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol? The answer may depend on the definition of insurrection.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-14th-amendment-2024-election-64ea3e076af335a3e1bce6d7620d58a3?

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Minnesota Supreme Court dismisses ‘insurrection clause’ challenge and allows Trump on primary ballot

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Former President Donald Trump will stay on the Minnesota primary ballot after the state supreme court on Wednesday dismissed a lawsuit seeking end his candidacy under a rarely-used constitutional provision that forbids those who “engaged in insurrection” from holding office.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-election-president-f6b72c94bb351c1b870d4884e54f6a75?

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Michigan judge says Donald Trump can stay on primary ballot The ruling is a blow to the effort to stop the former president’s candidacy with a Civil War-era Constitutional clause. This is the second time in a week that a state court declined to remove Trump from a primary ballot. Read more.

Why this matters Judge James Redford rejected arguments that Trump’s role in the Capitol riot meant the court had to declare him ineligible under the insurrection provision of the 14th Amendment.   The judge added that it should be up to Congress to decide whether Trump is disqualified under the section of the U.S. Constitution that bars from office a person who “engaged in insurrection.” Free Speech For People, a liberal group that has brought 14th Amendment cases in a number of states, said it will immediately appeal the ruling.   The two-sentence clause in the 14th Amendment has been used only a handful of times since the years after the Civil War. It’s likely that one of the active cases eventually will be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which has never ruled on the insurrection clause.

Related coverage ➤ The Georgia district attorney who charged Trump expects his trial to be underway over Election Day Donald Trump’s lawyers focus on outside accountants who prepared his financial statements

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Case seeking to bar Trump from 2024 ballot appealed to Colorado Supreme Court

Former president and plaintiffs file separate appeals on Monday in 14th Amendment case

https://floridaphoenix.com/2023/11/21/case-seeking-to-bar-trump-from-2024-ballot-appealed-to-colorado-supreme-court/?

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Colorado Supreme Court schedules hearing in Trump 14th Amendment case

The Colorado Supreme Court agreed to consider appeals in a case over whether former President Donald Trump should be barred from the state’s 2024 primary ballot. The Denver-based court Tuesday scheduled oral argument for Dec. 6.

https://floridaphoenix.com/blog/colorado-supreme-court-schedules-hearing-in-trump-14th-amendment-case/?

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⚖️ Cold reception for anti-Trump suit

Trump attorney Scott Gessler argues before the Colorado Supreme Court in Denver yesterday. Photo: David Zalubowski/AP Efforts to keep former President Trump off the ballot next year in Colorado seemed to hit a wall yesterday in the state's Supreme Court, Axios Denver's John Frank reports. ⚖️ Catch up quick: The 14th Amendment says people who have "have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against" the U.S. cannot hold certain federal offices. But it's not clear: (a) Whether that clause applies to the president. (b) Whether Trump's role rose to the level of insurrection. After oral arguments, the Colorado Supreme Court seemed inclined to rule that Trump can be on the ballot. Go deeper.

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Michigan court rejects challenges to Trump’s spot on 2024 primary ballot

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — The Michigan Court of Appeals said Thursday it won’t stop former President Donald Trump from appearing on the state’s 2024 Republican primary ballot, turning aside challenges from critics who argue that his role in the 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol disqualifies him.

https://apnews.com/article/michigan-trump-primary-election-insurrection-clause-40037de5f27efe20b688a0c93aa6781b?

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Maine Sec. of State hears arguments for and against challenges to Trump’s ballot eligibility

Mainers who filed challenges to former President Donald Trump’s primary election eligibility say putting him on the ballot would violate two amendments of the U.S. Constitution, the 14th and 22nd. Counsel for Trump says only one section of the Constitution matters — the three qualifications for the presidency.

https://floridaphoenix.com/2023/12/18/maine-sec-of-state-hears-arguments-for-and-against-challenges-to-trumps-ballot-eligibility/?

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Colorado Supreme Court bars Donald Trump from appearing on state’s ballot in 2024

Donald Trump cannot appear on Colorado’s primary ballot, the state’s Supreme Court ruled Tuesday in a legal challenge that has gained national notice as the former president seeks the 2024 Republican nomination.

https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2023/12/19/donald-trump-colorado-ballot-case-supreme-court-14th-amendment/?

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Donald Trump banned from Colorado ballot in historic ruling by state’s Supreme Court A divided Colorado Supreme Court on Tuesday declared former President Donald Trump ineligible for the White House under the U.S. Constitution’s insurrection clause. He was removed from the state’s presidential primary ballot, setting up a showdown in the nation’s highest court to decide whether the GOP front-runner can remain in the race. Read more.

Why this matters: The decision from a court whose justices were all appointed by Democratic governors marks the first time in history that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment has been used to disqualify a presidential candidate.   The court stayed its decision until Jan. 4, or until the U.S. Supreme Court rules on the case. Colorado officials say the issue must be settled by Jan. 5, the deadline for the state to print its presidential primary ballots.   Trump lost Colorado by 13 percentage points in 2020 and doesn’t need the state to win next year’s presidential election. But the danger for the former president is that more courts and election officials will follow Colorado’s lead and exclude Trump from must-win states.

Related coverage ➤  A voter’s challenge to having Trump’s name on North Carolina’s primary ballot has been dismissed Liberal group appeals ruling letting Trump stay on ballot to Michigan Supreme Court Minnesota Supreme Court dismisses ‘insurrection clause’ challenge and allows Trump on primary ballot

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Trump's new court test

Twenty-three years after the landmark Bush v. Gore, the U.S. Supreme Court again faces a momentous decision about a presidential election:

• A historic ruling by the Colorado Supreme Court yesterday will likely force the justices to decide — very quickly by SCOTUS standards — if states can ban Trump from the ballot using the U.S. Constitution's insurrection clause, Axios' Noah Bressner and Justin Green write.

Why it matters: This fuels a broader disqualification drive against the former president. Trump and his campaign are already feasting on the ruling as "election interference."

? What we're hearing: Anti-Trump Republicans fear the ruling could look like the establishment trying to thwart Trump, who can play the victim.

• Trump likely wouldn't lose much by staying off the ballot: He lost Colorado by double digits in 2020. No Republican has won the Centennial State since 2004. But he could benefit from the fight.

What's happening: The Colorado decision marks the first time a court has found that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment — which bans insurrectionists who once swore to uphold the Constitution from holding office — applies to Trump.

• The Colorado Supreme Court, in a 4-3 ruling, removed Trump from the state's primary ballot, concluding that he "incited and encouraged the use of violence and lawless action to disrupt the peaceful transfer of power."

Courts have so far rejected similar lawsuits in other states. Minnesota's top court rejected an attempt to push Trump off the ballot last month. A judge ruled against another effort in Michigan that's now being appealed.

• Trump's legal spokeswoman, Alina Habba, said: "This ruling ... attacks the very heart of this nation's democracy. It will not stand, and we trust that the Supreme Court will reverse this unconstitutional order."

The court stayed the ruling until Jan. 4, with the option to keep the stay in place if the Supreme Court takes up the case before then.

• The state's primary is set for Super Tuesday, on March 5.

?️ The big picture: This isn't the only Trump question facing the high court.

• Special counsel Jack Smith asked the justices earlier this month to weigh whether Trump is "absolutely immune" from prosecution for crimes he committed in office.
• Last week, the Supreme Court agreed to review a charge — "obstruction of an official proceeding" — that has been used to prosecute over 300 Jan. 6 defendants.

?️ What to watch: There's already a budding campaign to pressure Justice Clarence Thomas to recuse himself from any ruling because of his wife's connections to the Trump White House before Jan. 6.

• Ginni Thomas was involved with Trump's attempt to overturn the results of 2020 election.

? What's next: The Supreme Court has an extremely narrow window to take up the case and issue a ruling.

• Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold said the court would need to decide within weeks for her office to meet a Jan. 5 deadline to certify and print ballots.
• If the Supreme Court doesn't rule in time, Trump's name could remain on the ballot.

State by state: Where efforts stand to disqualify Trump from '24 ballots ...

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The Constitution’s insurrection clause threatens Trump’s campaign. Here is how that is playing out

DENVER (AP) — Former President Donald Trump’s bid to win back the White House is now threatened by two sentences added to the U.S. Constitution 155 years ago.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-14th-amendment-2024-colorado-79373b5043976588b599fc00ede049e8?

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⚖️ Threats to Colo. justices after Trump ruling

The FBI and Denver police are investigating threats to the Colorado Supreme Court justices who ruled that former President Trump can't appear on state ballots next year.

• A Denver police spokesperson told Axios' Rebecca Falconer that officers are "providing extra patrols around justice's residences" following threats against the justices.

Threat level: The names of the four Colorado justices who ruled to disqualify Trump have appeared frequently in "incendiary" posts on extremist online forums, with calls to expose the judges' personal data, CNN reports.

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Police investigating incidents involving Colorado justices after Trump removed from state’s ballot

DENVER (AP) — Police said Tuesday they are investigating incidents directed at Colorado Supreme Court justices and providing extra patrols around their homes in Denver following the court’s decision to remove former President Donald Trump from the state’s presidential primary ballot.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-colorado-justices-threat-3f05d134f8cfa14368107fa9dff97117?

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Michigan Supreme Court will keep Trump on 2024 primary ballot

Michigan’s Supreme Court is keeping former President Donald Trump on the state’s primary election ballot.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-14th-amendment-ballot-michigan-colorado-b5a5d9ffa75efa63ab4780b04329e2a2?

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Maine bars Trump from ballot as US Supreme Court weighs states’ authority to block former president

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Maine’s Democratic secretary of state on Thursday removed former President Donald Trump from the state’s presidential primary ballot under the Constitution’s insurrection clause, becoming the first election official to take action unilaterally as the U.S. Supreme Court is poised to decide whether Trump remains eligible to return to the White House.

https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2023/12/28/maine-bars-trump-from-ballot-as-us-supreme-court-weighs-state-authority-to-block-former-president/?

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Trump ballot ban appealed to US Supreme Court by Colorado Republican Party

DENVER (AP) — The Colorado Republican Party on Wednesday appealed that state’s supreme court decision that found former President Donald Trump is ineligible for the presidency, the potential first step to a showdown at the nation’s highest court over the meaning of a 155-year-old constitutional provision that bans from office those who “engaged in insurrection.”

https://apnews.com/article/trump-ballot-insurrection-colorado-supreme-court-c51a09d231a5b29475505b0c402a2d89

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Maine bars Trump from ballot as US Supreme Court weighs states’ authority to block former president Maine’s Democratic Secretary of State, Shenna Bellows, on Thursday, removed former President Donald Trump from the state’s presidential primary ballot under the Constitution’s insurrection clause, becoming the first election official to take action unilaterally as the U.S. Supreme Court is poised to decide whether Trump remains eligible to return to the White House. Read more.

Why this matters: Bellows’ decision follows a ruling earlier this month from the Colorado Supreme Court that booted Trump from the ballot there under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment.   While Maine has just four electoral votes, it’s one of two states to split them. Trump won one of Maine’s electors in 2020, so having him off the ballot there could have outsized implications in a race that is expected to be narrowly decided.   Legal experts said that Thursday’s ruling demonstrates the need for the nation’s highest court, which has never ruled on Section 3, to clarify what states can do.

Related coverage ➤  Trump is blocked from the GOP primary ballot in two states. Can he still run for president? Can Trump be on the ballot in 2024? It can hinge on the meaning of ‘insurrection’ Jan. 6 rioter who was sentenced in secret provided information to authorities, court papers say

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⚖️ How justices could solve Trump puzzle

Efforts have been made to keep Trump off the ballot in more than 30 states. Screenshot: ABC News Deciding the momentous question of whether states can bar former President Trump from their ballots as an insurrectionist, Chief Justice John Roberts "will doubtless seek consensus or, at least, try to avoid a partisan split of the six Republican appointees against the three Democratic ones," N.Y. Times Supreme Court reporter Adam Liptak writes. Why it matters: The case — after Trump has been ordered removed from primary ballots in Colorado and Maine — could be "as consequential and bruising as Bush v. Gore," which decided the presidential election of 2000. A way out: Roberts "may want to explore the many paths the court could take to keep Mr. Trump on state ballots without addressing whether he had engaged in insurrection or even assuming that he had," Liptak writes: The justices could rule that congressional action is needed before courts can intervene, that the constitutional provision at issue does not apply to the presidency or that Mr. Trump's statements were protected by the First Amendment. "Such an outcome would certainly be a stinging loss for Mr. Trump's opponents," Liptak concluded. "But the Supreme Court would be attracted to what it would present as a modest ruling that allows Mr. Trump to remain on the ballot." Read the story (gift link — no paywall). Trump at the Republican Party of Florida's Freedom Summit in Kissimmee, Fla., on Nov. 4. Photo: Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel ? D'oh! Michael Cohen, Trump's onetime personal lawyer, admitted in a filing unsealed yesterday that he used Google's AI chatbot, Bard, to accidentally cite fake legal cases. The made-up legal citations were used as part of Cohen's bid to secure an early end to the court-ordered supervision that allowed him to be released from prison in 2021, Axios' Ivana Saric writes. Why it matters: The episode could undermine the criminal case against Trump by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who's expected to call Cohen as the star witness at the jury trial, the N.Y. Times notes: "The former president's lawyers have long attacked Mr. Cohen as a serial fabulist; now, they say they have a brand-new example." ? How it happened: Cohen's lawyer Danya Perry explained that Cohen "conducted open-source research" using Google Bard. Having generated the case citations with the AI program, Cohen sent them to his lawyer David Schwartz, who included them in the motion without verifying them, Perry wrote. Cohen explained that as a non-practicing lawyer he had "not kept up with emerging trends (and related risks) in legal technology." Read the filing ...