Lawyers don’t want to risk America’s safety by waiting to see if Donald Trump can win the 2024 election. They have urged the Supreme Court to declare Donald Trump ineligible to be president.
There are obviously countless reasons for this. For example, he spearheaded the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol in a bid to overturn his 2020 election loss. In a filing, the lawyers urged the justices not to shirk their constitutional duty.
The filing contained vivid descriptions of what happened on the day of the Capitol riot. The lawyers told the justices to uphold a Colorado court decision that kicked Trump off the state’s primary ballot.
“Nobody, not even a former President, is above the law,” the lawyers wrote. There will be a court hearing in less than two weeks. Many eyes will be on this as the case has the potential to disrupt the coming election.
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The case gives the high court its first look at a provision of the 14th Amendment that bars some people who “engaged in insurrection” from holding public office. The amendment was adopted in 1868, after the Civil War.
In their plea, the lawyers said, “Trump intentionally organized and incited a violent mob to attack the United States Capitol in a desperate effort to prevent the counting of electoral votes cast against him” following his loss to Democrat Joe Biden.
The lawyers want a decision that makes clear that the events of January 6 were an insurrection. One for which Trump bears responsibility. According to the lawyers, the constitutional provision at issue covers the president, and Congress doesn’t need to take action before states can apply it, the lawyers wrote.
The written filing includes details of Trump’s actions leading up to January 6, including a tweet from December 19, 2020, in which he informed followers of the planned protest on the day Congress would count the electoral votes.
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“Be there,” he wrote. “Will be wild.” According to the lawyers, Trump “lit the fuse” with his speech to supporters on January 6 and it was indeed wild. The brief comes complete with photographs of the chaos from that day, including one of U.S. Capitol Police Officer Daniel Hodges pinned in a doorway.
Trump’s lawyers have stooped to threats and Colorado’s move. They argue that attempts to keep him off the ballot “threaten to disenfranchise tens of millions of Americans.”
They also promise to “unleash chaos and bedlam” if other states imitate Colorado’s action. According to Trump’s legal team, the Colorado Supreme Court’s 4-3 ruling should be reversed for several reasons.
One is that he did not participate in the insurrection and that the amendment does not cover the presidency. They also contend that Congress must enact legislation before states can invoke the provision to keep candidates off the ballot.
The justices will hear arguments on February 8. Both sides in the case think the court needs to act swiftly so that voters know whether Trump is eligible for the presidency.
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The court is dealing with the dispute, but they have little time and have to produce a decision before March 5, Super Tuesday, when the largest number of delegates in a day is up for grabs, including in Colorado.
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