Former President Donald Trump called on the United States Supreme Court to overturn the Colorado Supreme Court decision that barred him from that state’s Republican primary ballot. The former president said that there would be “chaos and bedlam” if the decision was not struck down.
In a legal filing, the former president’s legal team said that the Colorado decision was unconstitutional.
The attorneys argued that the 14th Amendment’s ‘insurrection’ clause did not apply to Trump, stating that the court’s decision was “based on a dubious interpretation.” The legal team argued that Trump is “not even subject” to the clause, arguing that the president “is not an ‘officer of the United States’ under the Constitution.”
“And even if President Trump were subject to section 3 he did not ‘engage in’ anything that qualifies as ‘insurrection,'” read the argument.
Attorneys for the former president cited efforts by activists “in more than 30 states” to remove Trump from the ballot “based on similar rationales.”
The Court should put a swift and decisive end to these ballot-disqualification efforts, which threaten to disenfranchise tens of millions of Americans and which promise to unleash chaos and bedlam if other state courts and state officials follow Colorado’s lead,” read the legal brief.
Trump also predicted that the U.S. Supreme Court would ultimately rule in his favor. The former president’s legal plea has been supported by numerous amicus briefs from Republicans and backers.
Trump predicts The Supreme Court will rule in his favor and keep him on the ballot.pic.twitter.com/Q6aOxkfoyg
— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) January 19, 2024
The former president’s attorneys also argued that there was “nothing” in Colorado’s state election code that “requires the Secretary of State to evaluate the qualifications of presidential primary candidates.”
The legal filing also said that the secretary of state has “no duty” to “exclude presidential candidates from the ballot.”
The former president received a boost from the Colorado Republican Party, which voted to endorse the former president prior to the public vote.
The Colorado high court decision was followed by a similar decision by Maine’s secretary of state to bar Trump from that state’s Republican primary ballot. However, the decision was stayed pending further court review.
