The Supreme Court ruled unanimously on Monday that former President Donald Trump is eligible to run for president on the Colorado state ballot, reversing the decision by the Supreme Court of Colorado that found Trump ineligible to run for president based on the 14th Amendment and arguments that Trump engaged in insurrection because of the Jan. 6 protests.
The high court’s decision is another legal victory for Donald Trump as the 45th president continues to rack up decisive Republican primary wins in his bid for reelection to the White House. Trump was fresh off his latest first-place finish in Missouri as the announcement came from the Supreme Court keeping him on the Colorado Republican primary and general election ballots.
NEW: CNN is having a pouting session over the Supreme Court's ruling in favor of Trump, says it is very "unfortunate" for America.
Good day for America. Bad day for the propagandists.
"Look, unfortunately for America, the court isn't necessarily wrong that this is the way the… pic.twitter.com/WvUy9Qz6Hk
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) March 4, 2024
“For the reasons given, responsibility for enforcing Section 3 against federal officeholders and candidates rests with Congress and not the States,” the Supreme Court wrote in its majority opinion. “The judgment of the Colorado Supreme Court therefore cannot stand … The judgment of the Colorado Supreme Court is reversed. The mandate shall issue forthwith.”
Section 3 of the 14th Amendment says, “No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President … who, having previously taken an oath … as an officer of the United States … to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same.”
In the Colorado case, as in many other efforts to block Trump from the ballot across the country, the litigants argued that Trump’s supporters engaged in an insurrection against the government on Jan. 6 and that his speech to his supporters that day incited them, disqualifying the former president under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment according to their argument.
The Colorado Supreme Court wrote in a majority opinion in December, “We conclude that because President Trump is disqualified from holding the office of President under Section Three (of the 14th Amendment), it would be a wrongful act under the Election Code for the Secretary to list President Trump as a candidate on the presidential primary ballot.”
But the Supreme Court ruled on Monday that Congress is responsible for enforcing Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, not the states, so the Colorado Supreme Court ruling “cannot stand.”
