Did Trump engage in insurrection?
Challengers to Trump’s eligibility have argued in court filings that Trump engaged in insurrection by inflaming his supporters with false allegations of voter fraud in the aftermath of the 2020 election and attempting multiple schemes to overturn the election. After a week-long trial, a Colorado judge agreed and found that Trump did engage in insurrection.
The Colorado Supreme Court upheld the trial court’s determination finding that “the evidence amply showed that President Trump undertook all these actions to aid and further a common unlawful purpose that he himself conceived and set in motion: prevent Congress from certifying the 2020 presidential election and stop the peaceful transfer of power.”
Amdt14.S3.2 Trump v. Anderson and Enforcement of the Insurrection Clause (Disqualification Clause)
Fourteenth Amendment, Section 3:
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.
The Colorado Supreme Court believes Section 3 does apply to the office of President. The court interpreted Section 3 based on constitutional context and “history surrounding the enactment of the Fourteenth Amendment.” The court maintains that the omission of the office of President from the text of Section 3 is “because it is so evidently an “office.” Additionally, Colorado’s high court stated “no specific office is listed in Section Three; instead, the Section refers to “any office, civil or military.”
Challengers to Trump’s eligibility have argued in court filings that Trump engaged in insurrection by inflaming his supporters with false allegations of voter fraud in the aftermath of the 2020 election and attempting multiple schemes to overturn the election. After a week-long trial, a Colorado judge agreed and found that Trump did engage in insurrection.
The Colorado Supreme Court upheld the trial court’s determination finding that “the evidence amply showed that President Trump undertook all these actions to aid and further a common unlawful purpose that he himself conceived and set in motion: prevent Congress from certifying the 2020 presidential election and stop the peaceful transfer of power.”
Amdt14.S3.2 Trump v. Anderson and Enforcement of the Insurrection Clause (Disqualification Clause)
Fourteenth Amendment, Section 3:
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.
The Colorado Supreme Court believes Section 3 does apply to the office of President. The court interpreted Section 3 based on constitutional context and “history surrounding the enactment of the Fourteenth Amendment.” The court maintains that the omission of the office of President from the text of Section 3 is “because it is so evidently an “office.” Additionally, Colorado’s high court stated “no specific office is listed in Section Three; instead, the Section refers to “any office, civil or military.”