Chuck Darwin

California Governor Gavin Newsom telegraphed to his fellow California Democrats not to get ahead of the U.S. Supreme Court, which will almost certainly be the final arbiter of any decision to disqualify Trump from the presidency

“There is no doubt that Donald Trump is a threat to our liberties and even to our democracy,” Newsom said, “but in California, we defeat candidates at the polls. Everything else is a political distraction.”
His remarks threw cold water on numerous attempts by elected officials to seize on the Colorado decision.

Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, who is running for governor in 2026, issued a letter urging California Secretary of State Shirley Weber to “explore every legal option” to remove Trump from the ballot.
Democratic state Sen. Dave Min, an Orange County congressional candidate, said he would introduce a bill letting California residents sue to block ineligible candidates — although given the legislative calendar, it is all but impossible for such a measure to be passed and take effect in time to apply to the March 5 presidential primary.
#california #newsom #invokethe14th #Kounalakis #DavidMin
https://www.politico.com/news/2023/12/22/newsom-pans-efforts-to-block-trump-from-california-ballot-00133152

Newsom pans efforts to block Trump from California ballot

A number of California politicians rushed to fast-track efforts to deem Trump ineligible for the presidency after the Colorado Supreme Court's ruling.

POLITICO
Dec 23, 2023 at 8:18pmWeb
Show threadKevin LeecasterDec 23, 2023

@cdarwin
State courts do not have the authority "to disqualify Trump from the presidency".

They are the final arbiters on who is eligible to be on their ballots (that may be tricky and open to legal argument), but our SCOTUS will decide whether section 3 of our 14th amendment disqualifies insurrectionists from taking and/or holding offices.

The Colorado case is about their election law that mandates that the SOS not put ineligible people on the ballots.

Show threadChuck DarwinDec 23, 2023
@GreenFire
That's a good clarification, although there remains the circular dependency: the only basis claimed for ineligibility of Trump to be on the ballot is disqualification to hold office under the 14th amendment 🤔
Show threadKevin LeecasterDec 23, 2023

@cdarwin
Which even Jefferson Davis could have challenged as had Trump. Davis was smart enough not to challenge it and it seems like people on average may have been more honorable back then or something too.

If he wants this disqualification to be moot, than the 14th amendment provides him with an avenue. It's a two-thirds vote in both chambers rightfully, but that does mean that he's not "being kept off the ballot" undemocratically.

He just has to make his case successfully.