Ultimately, the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to determine whether former President Donald Trump can keep running for the White House, the Associated Press reports. Currently, the movement comes from a state level -- on Wednesday, Trump appealed a ruling from the Colorado Supreme Court, which found that he’s ineligible for the presidency because he violated a rarely used constitutional prohibition on those who hold office having “engaged in insurrection.” On Tuesday, Trump appealed a similar ruling from Maine’s Democratic secretary of state. Trump remains on the ballot in both states until the appeals are done.
The nation’s highest court has never before ruled on Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, adopted in 1868 to prevent Confederates from regaining their former government posts. Trump’s lawyers say that part of the Constitution wasn’t meant to apply to the president -- it specifically mentions electors, senators and representatives, but not the presidency, they say. Also, Section 3 describes those who take an oath to “support” the United States, but the presidential oath doesn’t use that word — instead, the Constitution requires presidents to say they will “preserve, protect and defend” the document. And, finally, they say, Section 3 applies to any other “officer” of the United States. Trump’s lawyers argue that language is meant to apply to presidential appointees, not the actual president.
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