Supreme Court Sidesteps Insurrection Inquiry in Trump Ballot Case

Following the storming of the Capitol on January 6, 2021, protective measures were implemented around key government buildings, including the Supreme Court. However, during recent oral arguments regarding Colorado’s attempt to remove Donald Trump from the Republican primary ballot, the Supreme Court justices largely avoided addressing whether the events of January 6 constituted an insurrection.

Instead, the focus of the court appeared to be on other legal aspects of the case, potentially signaling a ruling in favor of Trump on different grounds. Specifically, there seemed to be a consensus among the justices that states do not possess the authority to enforce Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which prohibits individuals who have engaged in insurrection from holding federal office.

While questions were raised on various legal nuances, such as the applicability of Section 3 to the president and the necessity of congressional legislation for its enforcement, the justices refrained from directly engaging with the insurrection question. Some justices even suggested that determining whether an insurrection occurred should not be within the purview of individual states.

The sole justice to directly confront the insurrection issue was Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, who queried Trump’s lawyer about his client’s involvement. However, the lawyer vehemently denied any insurrectionary actions on Trump’s part, describing the events of January 6 as a riot rather than an organized attempt to overthrow the government.

Despite the Colorado Supreme Court’s ruling that Section 3 applies to the president and that Trump engaged in insurrection, the U.S. Supreme Court’s reluctance to delve into this matter leaves the question unresolved. Concerns were also raised during the arguments about the potential chaos of allowing different states to reach conflicting conclusions on such crucial matters, leading to uncertainty surrounding future elections.

Overall, while the issue of whether the events of January 6 constituted an insurrection remains contentious, the Supreme Court’s focus on other legal grounds suggests that this particular aspect may go unaddressed in its ruling on the Trump ballot case.