A U.S. court ruled that former U.S. President Donald Trump incited and participated in a civil war. This is the first ruling acknowledging former President Trump’s charge of inciting a rebellion in relation to the ‘January 6, 2021, invasion of the Capitol.’ Some analysts say that even if former President Trump is elected president next year, grounds for impeachment have been established with this ruling. As President Joe Biden and the Democratic Party, who are behind in virtual competitions in various opinion polls, are significantly increasing the level of their offensive against the ‘Trump risk’, there are concerns that American politics will experience unprecedented chaos regardless of the results of next year’s presidential election.
In a trial on the 17th, Colorado District Court Judge Sarah Wallace ruled in response to a civic group’s request to disqualify former President Trump from running for president that “Section 3 of the 14th Amendment does not apply to the president.” Section 3 of the 14th Amendment to the Constitution stipulates that a person cannot hold public office if he or she participates in a civil war or supports an enemy who threatens the Constitution. Judge Walras believed that this provision, added shortly after the Civil War, did not apply to the office of president as it listed prohibited activities such as members of the Senate and House of Representatives and presidential electors.
However, Judge Walras ruled that former President Trump incited and participated in hard-core supporters storming the Capitol and insurrection on January 6, 2021. He also pointed out that his speech calling for protests at the time could not be protected by the First Amendment, which stipulates freedom of expression.
Civic groups that filed a lawsuit welcomed the ruling that former President Trump could run for president even though he effectively staged an insurrection, but announced plans to appeal. Michael Gerhardt, a law professor at the University of North Carolina, pointed out to the U.S. daily USA Today, “It makes no constitutional sense that those who participated in the rebellion are restricted from all public offices but can advance to the presidency.”
Analysis suggests that this ruling opens a new phase of ‘Trump judicial risk.’ Even in the Republican Party, there were concerns that former President Trump could be impeached even if he wins the presidential election. Rep. Ken Buck (Colorado), a former prosecutor who is a member of the hard-line Republican Freedom Caucus, told CNN, “You can imagine that if former President Trump is convicted of a serious crime, there will be a legal impeachment investigation and a vote in Congress.” He continued, “If you were sitting as a sitting president with a felony conviction pending appeal, you could see Republican lawmakers supporting impeachment.”
President Biden’s presidential campaign intensified its offensive by focusing on former President Trump’s policy and judicial risks. Following President Biden mentioning former President Trump 21 times at a campaign fundraising event in San Francisco on the 14th and criticizing his abortion policy, the presidential campaign also released the ‘Trump’s America in 2025’ series, criticizing his political revenge, abortion policy, and immigration. They criticized the pledges, etc.
This is because, despite promoting the performance of Bidenomics (President Biden’s economic policy), he was successively defeated in a virtual confrontation with former President Trump, and an emergency light was turned on on his way to re-election. President Biden was behind by 1 to 6 percentage points in all five recently released opinion polls. CNN analyzed, “This is a noteworthy figure, considering that incumbent presidents who ran for re-election over a year before the presidential election were ahead of their rivals by more than 10 percentage points.”
In particular, as President Biden celebrates his 81st birthday on the 20th, the risk of old age is expected to arise again. Last year, on his 80th birthday, he escaped public attention with his granddaughter’s wedding held at the White House, but it is pointed out that it will be difficult to avoid this year. David Axelrod, a Democratic campaign strategist who was a senior adviser in the White House for former President Barack Obama, told the New York Times, “There is still a 50% chance of President Biden winning, but Trump’s strategy of relying on (issues) to win will cause real problems.”
Washington =
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.