If at first you don’t succeed, try and try again. That should be the motto of the Democratic party when it comes to preventing Donald Trump from running for president.
Cancel Donald Trump
New Jersey is the latest state to threaten removing Trump from the general election ballot in 2024, following in the footsteps of California, Colorado, and Minnesota, among others.
All states are using the 14th Amendment to justify Donald Trump’s removal, arguing that the seldom employed Section 3 “insurrection clause” disqualifies the former president from public office. It is also known as the “disqualification clause.”
Like other plaintiffs, a man from Mahwah, NJ, is contesting that anyone who has sworn an oath to uphold the Constitution and then engages in insurrection is barred from ever holding public office again.
According to those filing the suits, Trump’s involvement in the riots at the Capitol on Jan. 6 classifies as an insurrection.
Donald Trump has attacked the effort as “ridiculous” and unconstitutional.
Legal scholars are debating the issue.
The 14th Amendment was added to the Constitution three years after the end of the Civil War. Most scholars argue that Section 3 was intended to apply to those who served the Confederacy during the Civil War to prevent Confederate officials from gaining power in the reconstructed government. It wasn’t intended as a general provision empowering one party to disqualify the leading candidate of the other party in any future elections.
Theoretically, some say the amendment could be used to disqualify Trump. However, according to constitutional legal scholar and lawyer Alan Dershowitz, those who are trying to use it to boot the former president out of the political landscape for good have no solid standing.
He claims the litigations are not relevant to the present moment.
“If the disqualification had been intended as a general rule applicable to all future elections, it would have been essential to designate the appropriate decision maker, the procedures and the criteria for making so important a decision.”
Furthermore, Dershowitz considers such litigation would result in a constitutional crisis and further disintegrate an already fragile republic.
“Interpreting this post-Civil War amendment as a general provision for disqualifying candidates who some people may believe participated in what they regard as an insurrection or rebellion—as distinguished from a protest or even a riot—would create yet another divisive weapon in our increasingly partisan war.”
Like RFK, Jr. is arguing, Dershowitz says candidates should be selected by the people. Changing the rules mid-election undermines the democratic process.
“The Constitution articulated limited qualifications for presidential eligibility. Beyond those neutral criteria, the decision should be made by voters, who are free to consider the participation of a candidate in activities with which they disagree. Unless an amendment was clearly intended to further limit these qualifications, the voters are the ones to decide who is to be their president. The vague language of the 14th Amendment falls far short of what should be required for so radical a departure from our electoral process.”
Opposition Fuels Trump’s Fire
It seems the harder people try to take Donald Trump down, the more popular he becomes.
Current polls show the 45th president to be far and away the frontrunner in the Republican primary, leading by up to 47 points in most polls. In the general election, most polls show Trump either tied with Biden or slightly ahead.
It seems the electorate is rallying behind two candidates that evoke strong disapproval from progressive Democrats, but the will of the people doesn’t seem to matter much to the left. They seek to maintain a grip on power and will invoke any means to do so.
About the Author
Jennifer Galardi is the politics and culture editor for 19FortyFive.com. She has a Master’s in Public Policy from Pepperdine University and produces and hosts the podcast Connection with conversations that address health, culture, politics and policy. In a previous life, she wrote for publications in the health, fitness, and nutrition space. In addition, her pieces have been published in the Epoch Times and Pepperdine Policy Review. You can follow her on Instagram and Twitter. She writes from a Conservative perspective.
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