In a recent development, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled that former President Donald Trump could potentially be excluded from the state's 2024 ballot due to allegations of insurrection, despite the fact that Trump has not been formally charged or convicted of such a crime.
This decision has sparked a wave of controversy, with presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy voicing his strong opposition.
Ramaswamy, in his response to the ruling, stated, This is what an actual attack on democracy looks like. In an un-American, unconstitutional, and unprecedented decision, a cabal of Democrat judges are barring Trump from the ballot in Colorado." He further accused the bipartisan establishment of employing the 14th Amendment as a new strategy to prevent Trump from ever holding office again.
Ramaswamy, in a show of solidarity with Trump, pledged to withdraw from the Colorado GOP primary unless Trump is also permitted to be on the states ballot. He also called upon fellow Republicans Ron DeSantis, Chris Christie, and Nikki Haley to follow suit, warning that failure to do so would be tantamount to endorsing this controversial maneuver.
Ramaswamy continued, Todays decision is the latest election interference tactic to silence political opponents and swing the election for whatever puppet the Democrats put up this time by depriving Americans of the right to vote for their candidate of choice."
He went on to discuss the historical context of the 14th Amendment, which was ratified following the Civil War to prohibit former Confederate leaders from holding high federal or state office. Ramaswamy criticized the application of this amendment to Trump's case, arguing that it is absurd to equate Trump's actions with a rebellion against the United States.
Ramaswamy also pointed out a legal issue with the ruling, stating, Trump is not a former officer of the United States, as that term is used in the Constitution, meaning Section 3 does not apply." He cited the Supreme Court's explanation in Free Enterprise Fund v. Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (2010) to support his argument that the term does not apply to elected officials, including the President.
Ramaswamy concluded his statement by expressing his concern over the misuse of the 14th Amendment, stating, The Framers of the 14th Amendment would be appalled to see this narrow provisionintended to bar former U.S. officials who switched to the Confederacy from seeking public officebeing weaponized by a sitting President and his political allies to prevent a former President from seeking reelection. Our country is becoming unrecognizable to our Founding Fathers."
The lawsuit that led to this ruling was filed by a DC-based activist non-profit organization on behalf of Colorado citizens, demanding that Trump be barred from running for president in the state. A lower court initially ruled in favor of the plaintiff, but this decision was appealed by both the activist group and the Trump campaign. The appeal was based on the lower court's assertion that Trump had committed insurrection by allegedly inciting the January 6, 2021 riot at the US Capitol, a claim that the Trump campaign vehemently denies.
Ramaswamy, a staunch advocate and supporter of Trump, has previously praised him as the best President of the 21st century and of his lifetime.
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