The US Supreme Court handed Donald Trump a major victory on Monday as he campaigns to regain the presidency, barring states from disqualifying candidates for federal office under a constitutional provision involving insurrection and reversing a judicial decision that had excluded him from Colorado’s ballot.
The justices’ ruling
The ruling came on the eve of Super Tuesday, the day in the US presidential primary cycle when most states hold party nominating contests.
“BIG WIN FOR AMERICA!!!,” former President Trump wrote on his social media platform immediately after the ruling.
The justices found that only Congress can enforce the provision against federal officeholders and candidates.
Momentous issues
Though the justices unanimously agreed with the result, the court’s three liberal justices, as well as conservative Justice Amy Coney Barrett, said the court’s opinion decided more than what was necessary to resolve the case.
“For present purposes, our differences are far less important than our unanimity: All nine Justices agree on the outcome of this case. That is the message Americans should take home,” Barrett added.
A quick resolution
The Supreme Court resolved the Colorado ballot dispute speedily, a timeline that stands in contrast to its slower handling of Trump’s bid for immunity from criminal prosecution in a federal case in which he faces charges for trying to overturn his 2020 election loss. Trump’s trial has been put on hold awaiting the outcome of the Supreme Court’s decision – a benefit for him as he campaigns against Biden.
The justices in the immunity case in December declined a bid to speed up the resolution of the matter before a lower court had weighed in, then last week agreed to take up the matter after lower courts had ruled – setting arguments to take place in late April, a much longer timeline.
Challenging Trump’s eligibility
Trump’s eligibility had been challenged in court by a group of six voters in Colorado – four Republicans and two independents – who portrayed him as a threat to American democracy and sought to hold him accountable for the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol by his supporters.
As lawsuits seeking to disqualify Trump cropped up across the country, it was important for his candidacy to clear any hurdles to appear on the ballot in all 50 states.
Attacking the capitol
In a bid to prevent Congress from certifying Biden’s 2020 election victory, Trump supporters attacked police, broke through barricades, and swarmed the Capitol. Trump gave an incendiary speech to supporters beforehand, repeating his false claims of widespread voting fraud and telling them to go to the Capitol and “fight like hell.” He then for hours rebuffed requests that he urge the mob to stop.
