Trump Attorneys Move State Lawsuit to Federal Court
Attorneys for former President Donald Trump have moved a lawsuit seeking to bar him from running again for the White House from state to federal court in the first step of what promises to be a tangled legal battle that seems destined for the U.S. Supreme Court.
The liberal group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington filed the initial lawsuit Wednesday in Colorado state court, arguing that a Civil War-era clause prohibiting higher office for those who once swore an oath to the Constitution and then engaged in “insurrection” prevents Trump from running for president in 2024.
Trump’s attorneys on Thursday moved the case to federal court.
“Plaintiffs’ challenge to Colorado’s ability to place Donald Trump on the presidential ballot depends solely on the Fourteenth Amendment,” they wrote.
“Trump’s basis for removal of the state court action is federal question jurisdiction under Section 3 of Fourteenth Amendment.”
The 14th Amendment addresses numerous aspects of citizenship and citizen rights.
The Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics (CREW) case is the first of what is expected to be many challenges filed in various states by the group and by Free Speech for People, another liberal nonprofit.
Activists in other states have filed lawsuits in which they represent themselves, but legal observers contend the more robust complaints by the nonprofits are more likely to end up at the nation’s highest court, which has never ruled on the clause.
Trump on Friday slammed the liberal organization, contending it is affiliated with several of his critics and people he clashed with as president.
He called the group “TRUMP DERANGED CREW” on his social media network Truth Social and said it was “ridiculously” and “Unconstitutionally” trying to disqualify him.
CREW said it will ask a federal judge to return the case to state court. It has requested a speedy ruling on the issues before Colorado’s Republican primary ballot is finalized on Jan. 5.
The Western Journal has reviewed this Associated Press story and may have altered it prior to publication to ensure that it meets our editorial standards.
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