Court arguments are beginning in the effort to bar former President Donald Trump from running for his old job again. The first set of arguments start in Colorado on Monday.
DENVER — The campaign to use the U.S. Constitution's “insurrection” clause to bar former President Donald Trump from running for the White House again enters a new phase this week as hearings begin in two states on lawsuits that might end up reaching the U.S. Supreme Court.
“We've had hearings with presidential candidates debating their eligibility before — Barack Obama, Ted Cruz, John McCain,” said Derek T. Muller, a Notre Dame law professor, listing candidates challenged on whether they met the constitutional requirement of being a “natural born citizen.” But these cases, Muller added, are different, using an obscure clause of the Constitution with the “incendiary” bar against insurrection.
The plaintiffs in the cases argue the issue is simple: Trump's efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss, leading to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, mean he's disqualified from the presidency just as clearly as if he were not a natural-born citizen, another constitutional prerequisite for the 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. Finally, Trump's lawyers contend the former president never “engaged in insurrection” and was simply exercising his free speech rights to warn about election results he did not believe were legitimate.
The lawyers are expected to delve deeply into the history of the drafting of the provision in the 14th Amendment and its use between its adoption in 1868 and the amnesty law in 1872. There is scant legal precedent on the issue — so little that the attorneys have had to argue about the meaning of an 1869 case written by Salmon Chase, who was then chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court but wrote only as an appeals judge.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Colorado weather: Snow and ice on Colorado roads cause accidents, closures along interstatesNWS meteorologists advise travelers to drive slowly and carefully in the icy aftermath of Saturday’s snowstorm. Accidents reported across the state have shut down roads and interstates.
Read more »
What to know about the 14th Amendment Trump disqualification trial in ColoradoA trial to determine if the 14th Amendment’s “insurrectionist ban” applies to former President Donald Trump is set to begin Monday in Denver, an historic but likely longshot case that could block him from Colorado’s presidential ballot in 2024.
Read more »
Former President Trump to testify Nov. 6 in civil fraud trial; Ivanka Trump will also testifyMontgomery, Alabama
Read more »
Donald Trump's Reaction to Judge Ruling Ivanka Trump Must TestifyThe former president shared his thoughts on the ruling on Saturday by calling Judge Arthur Engoron 'incompetent' and a 'political hack.'
Read more »
Mary Trump Mocks Donald Trump's 'Toddler' Courtroom WalkoutThe former president's $250 million civil fraud trial stems from a lawsuit that New York Attorney General Letitia James filed last year.
Read more »
Trump attacks judge for ordering Ivanka to testify in his fraud trialTrump called Judge Arthur Engoron a 'partisan political hack' and 'radical Trump hater' on Saturday.
Read more »