NewsWorldAmericasUS politicsIn an unprecedented and historic judgement, Republican front-runner is struck from the ballot in the Centennial State over his role in inciting January 6
Donald Trump disqualified from Colorado’s 2024 ballot
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Donald Trump is continuing to rage against the decision by Colorado’s Supreme Court to block him from appearing on the state’s 2024 election ballots, turning his fire on Joe Biden by baselessly implying the president influenced the ruling and declaring that he represents “a threat to democracy”.
In a 4-3 decision on Tuesday, justices ruled that Mr Trump could be kept off the state’s GOP ballot under the 14th Amendment, which bars those who took a constitutional oath and then “engaged in insurrection” from holding public office, citing his role in inspiring the January 6 Capitol riot.
“We do not reach these conclusions lightly,” the majority opinion read. “We are likewise mindful of our solemn duty to apply the law, without fear or favour, and without being swayed by public reaction.”
The decision, which is stayed until early January, only applies in Colorado and Mr Trump has already vowed to appeal it and been busily fundraising off the back of the latest setback to hit his campaign.
As Republican outrage grows, Texas lieutenant governor Dan Patrick has threatened to retaliate by having Mr Biden removed from the ballot in his state, as California ponders following Colorado’s example.
1703157300Biden says ‘no question’ Trump supported insurrection on Jan 6President Joe Biden has said that there is “no question” that his predecessor Donald Trump supported an insurrection after Colorado’s state Supreme Court ruled that Trump is ineligible for the presidency.
Biden spoke to reporters in Milwaukee and was asked whether he believed the Republican was an insurrectionist.
“It’s self-evident,” he answered. “You saw it all. Now whether the 14th Amendment applies, I’ll let the court make that decision. But he certainly supported an insurrection. There’s no question about it. None. Zero.”
Eric Garcia has more.
Joe Sommerlad21 December 2023 11:15
1703155504Mary Trump gloats over uncle’s latest election setbackWhile the Magaverse is furious over the Colorado Supreme Court’s ruling, one person who is frankly loving it all is the president’s estranged niece Dr Mary L Trump.
She reacted to Tuesday’s news on X with a couple of gleeful ketchup posts in reference to the former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson’s amusing revelation to the House Jan 6 committee last year that Trump threw his lunch at the wall in anger when he learned that his then-attorney general Bill Barr had admitted there was no evidence to substantiate his boss’s bogus election fraud narrative.
If you’re interested in Trump’s rebel niece turned nemesis, here’s a profile.
Joe Sommerlad21 December 2023 10:45
1703153700Texas official threatens to remove Biden from ballot in retaliationTexas lieutenant governor Dan Patrick was one of many Republicans who lashed out at Democrats over the Colorado Supreme Court’s contentious ruling but went one further than the rest during an interview with Laura Ingraham on Fox News.
Patrick suggested that the GOP could move to unilaterally exclude Joe Biden from the ballot in states like Texas where it controls local government.
He did couch his bold statement, however, by insisting his party would not actually do so because it “believe[s] in democracy”.
“Maybe we should take Joe Biden off the ballot in Texas for allowing 8m people to cross the border since he’s been president, disrupting our state far more than anything anyone else has done in recent history,” were his exact words.
Trump’s former adviser Kellyanne Conway actually made the same proposition to South Dakota governor Kristi Noem on the same network but the latter politely demured.
The Colorado verdict is also making waves in California too, according to The Daily Beast, where a movement is reportedly underway to get Trump stuck off there as well.
John Bowden has more on Patrick.
Joe Sommerlad21 December 2023 10:15
1703151900Trump still stewing on Truth SocialSo has Donald Trump come to terms with the Colorado Supreme Court’s ruling that he is constitutionally ineligible to hold public office ever again due to his role in the 6 January uprising at the US Capitol?
No. No he hasn’t. Of course not.
Instead, he has been busily stewing on Truth Social, posting support for his fellow wounded conservatives and angry all-caps howls like this:
Here’s a recap of his response yesterday courtesy of IndyTV.
Donald Trump falsely claims Colorado court ruling is ‘election interference’
Joe Sommerlad21 December 2023 09:45
1703149200Trump is off the 2024 ballot in Colorado – here’s how his fellow candidates feel: Nikki Haley Ms Haley told reporters in Iowa that while she does not believe Mr Trump should be president, it should be up to the voters to decide if he obtains the office, not judges.
“I don’t think Donald Trump needs to be president, I think I need to be president. I think that’s good for the country,” Ms Haley said.
“We don’t need to have judges making these decisions, we need voters to make these decisions so I want to see this in the hands of the voters. We’re going to win this the right way, we’re going to do what we need to do,” she added.
The former South Carolina governor and UN ambassador said “the last thing” the country needs is judges deciding who can be on the ballot.
Ariana Baio21 December 2023 09:00
1703145600Trump is off the 2024 ballot in Colorado – here’s how his fellow candidates feel: Asa HutchinsonThe former Arkansas governor was the only 2024 candidate to not defend the former president, saying “the factual finding that he supported insurrection will haunt his candidacy.”
Mr Hutchinson said he raised similar concerns about Mr Trump’s ballot eligibility during the first GOP debate, the only one Mr Hutchinson qualified for and participated in.
During the August debate, Mr Hutchinson was asked if he would support the former president should he be the Republican National Committee nominee, but the former governor said Mr Trump could be disqualified from being president due to his involvement in January 6.
Ariana Baio21 December 2023 08:00
1703142000How did other states handle the 14th Amendment argument?Colorado is the first state to disqualify Mr Trump under the 14th Amendment. So far, the other states where lawsuits were filed have dismissed them or rejected the claim.
In November, the Minnesota Supreme Court dismissed the lawsuit, claiming election officials nor judges had the authority to stop the Republican Party from offering Mr Trump the nomination.
Earlier this month, a federal judge in Arizona rejected a little-known Republican candidate’s lawsuit to remove Mr Trump citing the 14th Amendment.
Judges in New Hampshire and Rhode Island dismissed similar lawsuits in their states.
John Bowden and Ariana Baio21 December 2023 07:00
1703138400VIDEO: Biden says there’s ‘no question’ Trump is an insurrectionist Biden says there’s ‘no question’ Trump is an insurrectionist
Gustaf Kilander21 December 2023 06:00
1703134800How Trump is barred from Colorado’s election ballotA majority of the Colorado Supreme Court was convinced of the argument in a 4-3 ruling released on 19 December.
The court said Section Three of the 14th Amendment applied to Mr Trump and thus “it would be a wrongful act under the Election Code for the Colorado secretary of state to list him as a candidate on the presidential primary ballot.”
Justices heard arguments in the case earlier this month after a district court judge ruled that the provision did not apply to the president. The judge argued that Section Three does not explicitly mention the presidency only “officers of the United States” and because the presidential oath contains wording separate from other officers it was not included.
However, the state’s supreme court justices said they considered the presidency as part of “officers of the United States”.
More importantly, the justices agreed that January 6 was an insurrection and Mr Trump engaged in it when he sent messages to his supporters – an argument in the case that has been highly disputed in other states.
“We do not reach these conclusions lightly,” justices wrote in a majority opinion. “We are mindful of the magnitude and weight of the questions now before us. We are likewise mindful of our solemn duty to apply the law, without fear or favor, and without being swayed by public reaction to the decisions that the law mandates we reach.”
Much of the pushback from the Trump camp thus far can be summed up by the assertion that none of the January 6 rioters convicted of crimes related to the attack on Congress have been directly charged with engaging in a rebellion or insurrection.
Jonathan Turley, a conservative legal theorist with George Washington University, agrees. He has argued that the attack on Congress was “a protest that became a riot”, dismissing more serious charges filed against militia leaders, and arguing that Mr Trump’s speech on the White House lawn just minutes before the brunt of the violence began did not qualify as incitement.
Mr Trump said he would appeal the decision – likely it will now go before the US Supreme Court.
John Bowden and Ariana Baio21 December 2023 05:00
1703131247Trump is off the 2024 ballot in Colorado – here’s how his fellow candidates feel: Vivek RamaswamyMr Ramaswamy, a vocal supporter of Mr Trump, posted a two-minute-long video to X and issued a lengthy statement through his campaign defending the former president.
“This is what an actual attack on democracy looks like: in an un-American, unconstitutional, and unprecedented decision, a cabal of Democrat judges are barring Trump from the ballot in Colorado,” Mr Ramaswamy wrote in his statement.
Ariana Baio21 December 2023 04:00
