After years of accusing former President Donald Trump of inciting an insurrection by refusing to accept the results of the 2020 election and attempting to block Joe Biden’s certification, some senior House Democrats are now hinting that they may not certify the November election if Trump emerges as the winner.
During recent discussions about a Colorado decision that declared Trump unfit for the ballot due to the 14th Amendment’s “insurrectionist ban,” the Supreme Court appeared hesitant about granting a single state the power to disqualify him.
Yet, it is unclear whether the justices will directly address his eligibility.
Despite facing criticism from Republicans for opposing the certification of President Joe Biden’s victory in 2020, some senior Democrats interviewed by The Atlantic have hinted at the potential refusal to certify a Trump victory in 2024 if the Supreme Court does not definitively address his eligibility.
For instance, Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) expressed her belief that Trump is “clearly ineligible,” although she noted that challenging this status is a complex process with no established procedure for such circumstances.
However, she mentioned that she might be one of the Democratic legislators who would refuse to certify the election in the event of a Trump victory.
In contrast, Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.) labeled Trump as an “insurrectionist,” despite no formal charges against the former president for this crime, and with no indications that Joe Biden’s Justice Department is contemplating such charges.
Rep. Adam Schiff, a California Democrat, stated that he would not contest if the Supreme Court determines Trump’s eligibility. He explained to The Atlantic that he preferred not to speculate on potential chaos if the high court chose not to address this issue.
“I’m going to follow the law,” Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) told the Atlantic. “I would not object out of protest of how the Supreme Court comes down. It would be doing what I didn’t like about the January 6 Republicans.”
During the oral arguments, Colorado’s attorney, Jason Murray suggested to the justices that if they do not reach a clear decision, the issue could potentially reemerge in Congress.
“If this Court concludes that Colorado did not have the authority to exclude President Trump from the presidential ballot on procedural grounds…I think it could come back with a vengeance because, ultimately, members of Congress would — may have to make the — the determination after a presidential election if President Trump wins about whether or not he is disqualified from office and whether to count votes cast for him under the Electoral Count Reform Act,” he said.
During the proceedings in front of the high court, it was reported that the justices expressed doubt regarding Colorado’s choice to disqualify the ex-president and posed challenging inquiries to Murray.
Following the oral arguments at Mar-a-Lago, Trump addressed reporters and described the hearing as “a very elegant process,” expressing his desire for democracy to persist.
“So I just say that in watching the Supreme Court today, I thought it was very — it’s a very beautiful process. I hope that democracy of this country will continue, because right now we have a very, very tough situation with all of the radical left ideas, with the weaponization of politics. They weaponized it like it’s never been weaponized before. It’s totally illegal, but they do it anyway,” Trump said.
“And it has to stop. Every one of the court cases that I’m involved, every single one, civil, whether it’s the attorney generals or the district attorneys. You look at Fani in Georgia. They had many meetings with the White House and with the DoJ. They went there, eight-hour meetings. It was all staged.
It was a phony hoax. And now you’re looking at it, and it is a phony hoax. And hopefully that case will be dismissed in short order. It’s a — it’s a disgrace to this country, But they work together with the Justice Department and the White House and not supposed to do that,” Trump added.
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