Authored by Tom Ozimek via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),
Former President Donald Trump on Thursday denied being an “insurrectionist” whereas labeling President Joe Biden as one, whereas citing as proof components just like the “open” border and accusing the president of “destroying” America with radical anti-fossil gas insurance policies.
“I am not an insurrectionist (‘PEACEFULLY & PATRIOTICALLY’), Crooked Joe Biden is,” President Trump mentioned in a put up on Reality Social, with the phrases “peacefully & patriotically” in reference to a fraction of his Jan. 6 speech through which he informed members of the group to move to the Capitol constructing “to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard.”
The White Home didn’t instantly reply to a request for touch upon the previous president’s declare.
President Trump’s remarks got here two days after the Colorado Supreme Court docket dominated to bar him from the state’s presidential major poll on the idea of a bit of the 14th Modification that blocks anybody from working for workplace who engaged in an “rebel.”
The previous president referred to as the Colorado courtroom’s ruling a politically motivated choice and a “disgrace for our nation,” whereas his attorneys vowed to enchantment the choice to the U.S. Supreme Court docket.
President Biden declined to touch upon the Colorado Supreme Court docket choice however informed reporters there was “no query” that the previous president was an insurrectionist.
“Is Trump an insurrectionist, sir?” one reporter referred to as out, prompting President Biden to stroll nearer to the cameras, asking the reporter to repeat the query.
“I believe that is definitely self-evident, you noticed all of it,” President Biden answered.
“Now, whether or not the 14th Modification applies, I will let the courtroom make that call,” he added. “However he definitely supported rebel, no query about it, none, zero. And he appears to be doubling down on every thing.”
‘Insurrectionist’ Tit-for-Tat
President Trump accused President Biden of being an “insurrectionist” as soon as once more on Thursday, this time laying out a extra intensive rationale.
“Crooked Joe Biden is the Insurrectionist as a result of he let hundreds of thousands of unknown individuals come recklessly and unchecked by our insane ‘Open’ Border, let a warfare start within the Center East and Ukraine, Weaponized our DOJ & FBI, SURRENDERED in Afghanistan once we might have left with dignity and power—probably the most embarrassing occasion within the historical past of our Nation, and is destroying America with the GREEN NEW SCAM!!!” the previous president mentioned in a put up on Reality Social.
The previous president has repeatedly criticized President Biden for his lax border insurance policies, which he says are liable for an unlawful immigration disaster of historic proportions. President Trump has additionally accused the president of pulling strings to get the Justice Division to launch numerous investigations and costs towards him to undermine his 2024 presidential marketing campaign—claims President Biden has denied.
President Trump has additionally repeatedly criticized the incumbent for his anti-fossil gas insurance policies that he says are undermining America’s power independence and nationwide safety. He, against this, has vowed to reverse President Biden’s insurance policies if elected and “drill, drill, drill.”
The previous president additionally railed against the varied “faux political indictments” towards him, claiming that the White Home is behind each case that the Justice Division has introduced towards him and that he is preventing.
“Crooked Joe Biden is a risk to democracy,” President Trump mentioned in another post, whereas accusing him of election interference.
The Ruling
The Colorado Supreme Court docket’s Dec. 19 ruling centered on a bit of the 14th Modification that bars officers who’ve engaged in “rebel or revolt” from holding workplace.
Particularly, it is primarily based on an interpretation of Part 3 of the 14th Modification, which is called the disqualification clause, which states that no individual shall maintain workplace if they’ve “beforehand taken an oath as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the USA” and engaged in “rebel or revolt” towards the Structure.
The left-leaning group Residents for Duty and Ethics in Washington (CREW) sued the Colorado secretary of state to dam President Trump from showing on the poll, arguing that “officer of the USA” would absolutely cowl the very best workplace within the federal authorities, and so the 14th Modification’s disqualification clause ought to apply.
Nonetheless, Colorado 2nd District Court docket Decide Sarah Wallace mentioned in a 100-plus page ruling that there was “scant proof” that was the case, noting that the authors of the 14th Modification particularly listed workplaces, with the presidency not amongst them.
Decide Wallace did, nevertheless, discover that President Trump engaged in an “rebel,” and, on enchantment, the Colorado Supreme Court docket dominated that the U.S. president is a public “officer,” and so the 14th Modification’s disqualification clause does apply.
The unprecedented ruling makes Colorado the primary and solely state to disqualify President Trump from showing on a state major poll. It additionally makes President Trump the primary candidate in U.S. historical past to be declared ineligible to run for the White Home.
Jan. 6 Backdrop
President Trump held a rally close to the White Home on Jan. 6, 2021, through which he made statements encouraging his supporters to march to the Capitol, the place Congress was within the means of certifying the outcomes of the presidential election.
Whereas President Trump referred to as for the day’s occasions to be peaceable, a gaggle of individuals breached the Capitol, resulting in a violent confrontation with regulation enforcement.
The occasions of that day have been the topic of widespread scrutiny and debate, with President Trump’s political opponents accusing him of inciting an “rebel.”
The “rebel” allegations underpin a number of authorized efforts by President Trump’s opponents to dam him from being listed on ballots within the 2024 presidential race on 14th Modification grounds, looking for to painting him because the instigator of the Jan. 6 incident.
These instances mainly argued that the previous president took half in an “rebel” by giving an impassioned speech on Jan. 6 earlier than the Capitol breach occurred.
Regardless that President Trump mentioned in his Jan. 6 speech that protesters ought to “peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard,” his critics have seized on a portion of his remarks the place he mentioned “we battle like hell” and “for those who do not battle like hell, you are not going to have a rustic anymore” as a name for violence.
The previous president has, on quite a few events, denied calling for violent protests whereas insisting he meant his remarks about preventing like hell metaphorically.
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