Former President Donald Trump on Friday blasted the liberal watchdog group attempting to keep him off of next year’s presidential ballot in Colorado.
The Citizens for Responsibility & Ethics in Washington (CREW) earlier this month claimed that Trump “disqualified himself” from a second term as president. They attempted to label the Jan. 6 protests as an “insurrection” and further asserted that through them he violated the 14th Amendment.
Trump, of course, has not been charged or convicted for any such action.
Posting on Truth Social, the former president said, “The group suing me in Colorado to ridiculously try and Unconstitutionally keep me off the ballot…is TRUMP DERANGED ‘CREW.’”
He noted his lead over second-place Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is nearly 50 points. Trump named names of his detractors and said “I’ve been beating them for years, including impeachments. MAGA!!!”
BREAKING: The media has been caught lying in an attempt to smear President Donald Trump. Yesterday multiple outlets reported that voters in Colorado filed a lawsuit to keep Trump off the ballot, but what the headlines left out was who is actually behind it.
The group CREW, a… pic.twitter.com/cv2bftiHu1
— 🇺🇸Travis🇺🇸 (@Travis_in_Flint) September 7, 2023
Section 3 of the 14th Amendment established that an individual is disqualified from office if they “have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to enemies thereof.”
This very obviously does not apply to Trump, but Democrats are desperate to avoid a 2020 rematch with their embattled incumbent. Multiple flimsy indictments only served to strengthen his support, so now they are resorting to legal trickery.
There are already a few instances of legal filings citing the post-Civil War era 14th Amendment, but this is the first with resources necessary to support a protracted court battle.
The likelihood is high that the Supreme Court will ultimately need to step in and provide clarity and theoretical sanity. The insurrection clause has rarely been used since the 1860s, so there is precious little precedent to follow.
The intent of the law was to prevent former Confederate officials from being elected to Congress at the war’s end.
Among those warning that this is a dangerous legal path to take is Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. Though he and Trump clashed after the 2020 presidential election, the Republican admonished Colorado officials to resist pressure to alter the 2024 ballot.
Raffensperger noted, “For a secretary of state to remove a candidate would only reinforce the grievances of those who see the system as rigged and corrupt. Denying voters the opportunity to choose is fundamentally un-American.”
