In what many call a blatant effort to sway the 2024 presidential election, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) has filed a lawsuit to block President Donald Trump from appearing on Colorado’s GOP primary ballot. Filed on behalf of six purported Republican and unaffiliated Colorado voters, the lawsuit claims that Trump is ineligible under the 14th Amendment for his alleged actions on January 6, 2021.
CREW argues that Trump “violated his oath to preserve and defend the Constitution” and, therefore, has “disqualified himself from public office.” But it’s worth asking: Isn’t the very fabric of our democracy also at risk when activist groups make controversial and politically charged legal maneuvers to bar a candidate who currently leads the sitting president in the polls?
Liberal group files lawsuit in Colorado to keep Trump off the GOP primary ballot and 'any future election ballot' https://t.co/MMUWKH6dXK
— TheBlaze (@theblaze) September 7, 2023
The 115-page lawsuit was lodged against Colorado’s Democratic Secretary of State Jena Griswold, alleging she should have already excluded Trump from the ballot. In a somewhat neutral response, Griswold stated, “I look forward to the Colorado Court’s substantive resolution of the issues.”
Donald Trump’s lead in CNN’s latest general election poll suggests that a significant portion of the American populace still believes in his leadership. By attempting to eliminate Trump from the ballot, CREW is directly infringing on the democratic rights of millions of voters who want their voices heard.
CREW’s history and leadership also raise questions about the impartiality of this legal effort. The group’s president, Noah Bookbinder, was appointed by Biden’s Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to the DHS Advisory Council. Bookbinder said, “We aren’t bringing this case to make a point, we’re bringing it because it is necessary to defend our republic both today and in the future.” Given his political ties, one can’t help but question the true motivation behind this lawsuit.
CREW may argue that this lawsuit is in defense of the republic. Still, it also threatens the integrity of the electoral process. Colorado, a state that has been a political battleground, could set a concerning precedent if the courts side with CREW, making this not just a Colorado issue but a national one.
“The people who are pursuing this absurd conspiracy theory and political attack on President Trump are stretching the law beyond recognition much like the political prosecutors in New York, Georgia, and D.C.,” a spokesperson for the Trump campaign told reporters on Tuesday.
The statement added, “There is no legal basis for this effort except in the minds of those pushing it. This is nothing more than a blatant attempt by enemies of America to create fake excuses and use lawfare to deprive voters of choosing their next president.”
George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley said this week that the legal theory behind the lawsuit is “not simply dubious but dangerous.” He added, “The amendment was written to deal with those who engage in an actual rebellion causing hundreds of thousands of deaths.”
As the 2024 election looms, it is crucial to remember that the foundation of democracy lies in the people’s right to choose their leaders, not in legal maneuvering to limit those choices. This lawsuit inevitably raises vital questions about how far we are willing to go in letting the courtroom dictate results that should come solely from the ballot box.
