Saturday, February 10, 2024

The Supreme Court must fully resolve Trump disqualification case now to avert "chaos"


Of course the Supremes may also address the issue by rendering the 14th Amendment disqualification clause a nullity.  But they probably lose unanimity that way.  A six-three split would be damaging to the court.  BUT at oral argument it felt like only Sonia Sotomayor had the spirit to fight the six. In an unprecedented momentum of surpassing historical importance candor is the most prudent course. Unfortunately it seemed to be little in evidence. - GWC

By Chris Geidner
Toward the end of Jason Murray’s time at the U.S. Supreme Court podium on Thursday arguing to an increasingly unreceptive bench that Colorado’s Supreme Court was right to kick Donald Trump off the ballot, Murray issued a warning that the justices had best consider when crafting their opinion in the case.
 The resolution being suggested as the answer to this case by much of the court was essentially avoiding the big questions in the case by ruling that — regardless of whether any president is covered by Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment, whether the presidency is an office to which an insurrectionist is barred, and whether Trump engaged in insurrection — Colorado is not free to kick Trump off the ballot unless Congress passes legislation under Section 5 of the Fourteenth Amendment to allow Colorado to do so.
 Essentially, if you look back at my FAQ in advance of arguments, the justices could essentially ignore the whole first half of the six questions everyone has been debating in the many, many briefs submitted to the court in this case. Murray urged against such a resolution on behalf of his clients challenging Trump’s inclusion on the ballot, but he also warned that such a resolution could mean that the issues come back with a vengeance because  members of Congress would have to decide on January 6, 2025, “whether to count votes cast for him under the Electoral Count Reform Act.”


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