
In the wake of the decision by the Colorado Supreme Court to bar former President Donald Trump to appear on the state’s presidential primary ballot, President Joe Biden said this week there’s “no question” his biggest political rival supported an insurrection for his role in the Capitol protests on January 6, 2021.
After his plane touched down in Milwaukee Tuesday night, Biden spoke to reporters on the tarmac. While he wouldn’t comment on the outcome of the case in Colorado, he did respond to a reporter’s question about whether Trump is an insurrectionist.
Biden said:
“We saw it all. Now, whether the 14th Amendment applies, let the court make that decision. But, he certainly supported an insurrection. No question about it. None. Zero. And he seems to be doubling down on about everything.”
Biden traveled to Wisconsin to outline how the White House has been supporting businesses that are owned by Black residents.
While Colorado’s high court ruled 4-3 that Trump can’t appear on the ballot because he participated in an insurrection, that ruling will be stayed through January 4 because of appeals that are very likely.
In the majority opinion, the court wrote:
“We do not reach these conclusions lightly. We are mindful of the magnitude and weight of the questions now before us. We are likewise mindful of our solemn duty to apply the law, without fear or favor, and without being swayed by public reaction to the decisions that the law mandates we reach.”
A prior ruling, Sarah B. Wallace, a district judge in Colorado, ruled that Trump could stay on the presidential primary in the state. However, she also found the former president “engaged in insurrection” for the role he played in the Capitol protests.
That paved the way for the Colorado Supreme Court to make its decision.
Jena Griswold, the secretary of state in Colorado, issued a statement this week in which she said she’d “continue to follow court guidance on this important issue. The Colorado Supreme Court has ruled that Donald Trump is barred from the Colorado ballot for inciting the January 6 insurrection and attempting to overturn the 2020 Presidential Election. This decision may be appealed.”
A provision in the 14th Amendment that was passed in the Civil War era says that no one can serve as a member of Congress, be elected vice president or president or hold any other military or civil office in the U.S. if they’ve engaged in an “insurrection or rebellion” against the United States.
When the provision was included in the 14th Amendment, it was done so to prevent members of the Confederacy from holding political office in the future. It was also meant to dissuade others from rising up against the Union again.
Since that time, though, it hasn’t been used to prevent anyone from holding office. But, liberal groups have been suing various states to bar Trump from appearing on the presidential ballot, claiming he engaged in insurrection.