A rather interesting article has come to light from the left-leaning The Atlantic.
Writers J. Michael Luttig and Laurence H. Tribe are making the case that per the 14th Amendment, Section 3 of the Constitution, Donald Trump is ineligible to ever hold the office again.
That section, in case you are wondering, deals with a treasonous president.
14th Amendment, Section 3
Section 3 of the 14th Amendment states, “No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.”
Now, Trump has been accused, but not found guilty of this in a court of law.
Nor has two-thirds of each house voted successfully on Trump being removed from office.
Luttig argues, “All officials, federal and state, who have a responsibility to put on the ballot candidates for the presidency of the United States are obligated under the Constitution to determine whether Donald Trump qualifies to be put on the ballot,” reported CNN.
They go on to write, “Having thought long and deeply about the text, history, and purpose of the Fourteenth Amendment’s disqualification clause for much of our professional careers, both of us concluded some years ago that, in fact, a conviction would be beside the point.
“The former president’s efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, and the resulting attack on the U.S. Capitol, place him squarely within the ambit of the disqualification clause, and he is therefore ineligible to serve as president ever again.”
Again, let me stress here, Trump has not yet been found guilty of anything, so their argument is mute at this point, but that will not stop the media and possibly members of Congress from fighting Trump from taking office if he wins this election.
It also brings to light the question of what happens if the case gets delayed past the election.
Then, let’s assume Donald Trump wins the election and is now president, then the case gets tried and Trump is found guilty in the relevant Jack Smith case… would he then be removed from office?
There is actually precedent on this, as a Couy Griffin, a convicted (that being the key) Capitol rioter, was removed from a New Mexico election by the judge.
So, just keep this in mind, if Trump is convicted in any of these election cases that are on his docket for 2024, he could all of a sudden be removed from the ballot or office, throwing the entire GOP nomination or presidency into utter and complete chaos.
That is just one more consideration to make when casting your ballot in 2024.
Make no mistake, the article in The Atlantic is completely wrong to this point simply because Donald Trump has not been convicted if anything, but their article makes it sound as though this is already a done deal.
