by Natalia Mittelstadt
Republicans are calling for President Joe Biden to be removed from the 2024 primary ballot as former President Donald Trump is facing challenges to remove him from ballots in multiple states.
As challenges are brought to disqualify Trump from 2024 GOP primary ballots in more than 30 states for allegedly instigating an insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, Republicans are suggesting that Biden should be removed from the ballot in response, but because of the increased volume of illegal immigrants entering the U.S. through the southern border.
The challenges against Trump have been made under the insurrection clauses of the 14th Amendment, a Civil War-era amendment that hasn’t previously been used to disqualify a presidential candidate, Axios reported. The insurrection clauses do not specify whether a criminal conviction is necessary as a prerequisite. There have been candidates – albeit on the fringes – who have appeared on presidential ballots despite criminal convictions. Lyndon LaRouche ran his 1992 campaign from behind prison bars after a fraud conviction, and more famously, Eugene V. Debs ran his 1920 campaign from prison after being convicted of sedition. He garnered nearly a million votes.
Those challenging Trump’s eligibility to be on the primary ballot claim that the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021, was an insurrection that Trump initiated. Trump was impeached by the Democrat-led House following the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, but was acquitted by the Senate.
The only two successful challenges thus far are in Maine and Colorado, with an appeal of the latter to be heard before the U.S. Supreme Court next month. Trump has appealed the Maine decision made by the secretary of state.
Legal scholars have debated the application of the amendment to Trump, including Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz and Article III Project Founder Mike Davis.
Dershowitz posted on X that he believes the state courts don’t have authority regarding the 14th Amendment, and told Just the News separately he expects Maine’s declaration and Colorado’s decision to both be overturned.
Davis also told Just the News that the states have no power to enforce the 14th amendment. Rather, “Congress has to do it,” he said.
GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy has repeatedly said that he will withdraw from the primary ballots of Maine and Colorado unless Trump is allowed on the ballots.
Because of the push to remove Trump from state ballots, which many critics believe is political, Republicans are considering a counter-attack, trying to remove Biden from the 2024 ballot.
Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft (R), who is running for governor, posted on X on Friday following the Supreme Court taking up the Colorado appeal, saying the same standard should be applied to Biden as Trump.
“What has happened in Colorado & Maine is disgraceful & undermines our republic,” Ashcroft wrote. “While I expect the Supreme Court to overturn this, if not, Secretaries of State will step in & ensure the new legal standard for @realDonaldTrump applies equally to @JoeBiden!”
Missouri state Sen. Bill Eigel (R), who is also running for governor, announced on Friday that he plans to introduce legislation that would disqualify Biden from the Missouri ballot.
“By the Democrats’ own standard, Joe Biden should be immediately disqualified and removed from the ballot for the ‘aid and comfort’ he has given our enemies,” Eigel said in a press release, citing the treason clause in Article III of the U.S. Constitution.
“Our country is being invaded, because Joe Biden has swung our southern border wide open. President Biden has allowed more than 8 million people to stroll across our border illegally, causing more harm to this country than any other president in American history,” the state senator continued.
“My legislation exposes the absolute absurdity of Colorado’s and Maine’s decisions to remove President Donald J. Trump from the ballot. If radical leftists continue to push lies and fairytales in an attempt to kick Trump off the ballot in their states, Republicans have no choice but to buck up and fight back — use the facts to remove Biden from the ballot before he destroys this country even further,” he added.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), who is running in the GOP presidential primary race against Trump, said on Friday that he’s looking at blocking Biden from the ballot.
“This is just going to be a tit for tat and it’s just not gonna end well,” DeSantis said. “You could make a case — and I’m actually looking at this in Florida now — could we make a credible case” to block Biden from the ballot “because of the invasion of 8 million. And again, I don’t think that’s the right way to do it.”
In December, DeSantis made a similar statement, saying, “Can you have a Republican secretary of state disqualify Biden from the ballot? Because he’s let in 8 million people illegally, a massive invasion, including from enemies of our country.”
Last month, following Colorado removing Trump from the ballot, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick (R) also suggested that Biden be removed from the ballot.
“Seeing what happened in Colorado tonight … makes me think — except we believe in democracy in Texas — maybe we should take Joe Biden off the ballot in Texas for allowing 8 million people to cross the border since he’s been president, disrupting our state far more than anything anyone else has done in recent history,” Patrick said.
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Natalia Mittelstadt graduated from Regent University with Bachelor of Arts degrees in Communication Studies and Government.
Photo “Joe Biden” President Joe Biden. Background Photo “Voting Booths” by Tim Evanson. CC BY-SA 2.0.
