The ultimate presence of Donald Trump on the ballots of two states of the United States depends on the interpretation of a single paragraph of the Constitution that monopolizes the grievances of his opponents and the resources that the former president has already presented and is considering. The Section 3 of the 14th Amendment stipulates that he shall not be a Senator or representative in Congress or elector for the election of President and Vice President, (…) who has previously sworn to defend the Magna Carta, and to take part in any insurrection or rebellion against the United States participated or provided aid or facilities to the country's enemies.
Colorado and Maine excluded Trump from the Republican primaries in December in those states that rely on this argument for their role in the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021. The legal defense of the former US President (2017-2021), in turn, relies, among other things, on the fact that the paragraph does not mention the position of the President among the rejected positions.
“You have to twist the language a lot to say the president is not there,” Jackson Barlow, a politics professor at Juniata College in Pennsylvania, told EFE.
This amendment of 1868 It was approved after the American Civil War (1861-1865). to prevent people associated with the southern rebels of the Confederacy from coming to power, and since then it has only been applied to eight people in lower hierarchies, according to the organization Citizens for Ethics.
Trump could be the ninth if his resources are insufficient and he takes the country into “uncharted territory,” he adds Justin Crowe Professor of political science at the university Williams College of Massachusetts.
The appeal against Maine's decision was filed this Tuesday and is expected to soon also appeal against Colorado's decision, as the deadline for doing so ends on Thursday.
He is not accused of insurrection in the two criminal cases Trump has filed in Georgia and Washington DC over his attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election won by Democrat Joe Biden.
Linguistic nuances
“What does it mean to have taken part in an uprising or rebellion? It is not specified and is therefore open to interpretation. And is it enough for the Supreme Court of Colorado or the Secretary of State of Maine to confirm that such an insurrection took place?” “This underscores the complexity of the effort to disqualify Trump,” the Williams College expert told EFE.
In the US federal system, each state is responsible for organizing elections, including presidential elections, and therefore has the power to expel a candidate even if he or she has not been indicted, reducing support in the general election campaign. Each state in the United States has as many voters as there are members of Congress. A presidential candidate needs at least 270 votes to win the election, and traditionally whoever wins in a state receives the votes of all of their electors.
“One voice can make a difference, so this is an important issue,” emphasizes Richard Groper, a professor at California State University, Los Angeles, for whom it is important It is “difficult but not impossible” to prove that Trump was involved in the January 6 “insurrection.”
The Supreme Court could take a stand and establish a position that applies to all states if it decides to get involved. Michigan, for example, refused to disqualify Trump in December because the case raised a political question that should not be resolved by the judiciary.
Legal and political implications
The scope of these cases now goes beyond the purely legal. Trump is the Republicans' favorite candidate ahead of next November's presidential election and, according to Crowe, could benefit from the current situation regardless of how it ends.
If he gains his resources in Colorado and Maine to accuse liberals and Democrats of trying to keep him out of the polls, and if he loses them, to mobilize the population and use that accusation to demand more support The other side is so “scared” that they want to veto it.
“There has never been anything like this before, and our institutions will be challenged this year to respond to the threat that Trump, his supporters and his lawyers pose to them,” agrees Barlow, for whom the country is currently one Those experiencing such polarization are those who may find it justified to skip traditional political mechanisms to achieve their goals.