SCOTUS Upholds Trump’s Candidacy, Declining to Enforce the 14th Amendment

In a significant ruling, the Supreme Court declined to allow the 14th Amendment to derail Donald Trump’s presidential campaign. The justices unanimously agreed that Colorado overstepped its authority by attempting to use the post-Civil War provision to remove Trump from the state’s primary ballot. While lower courts had found Trump’s actions around January 6th constituted an “insurrection” under the 14th Amendment, the high court skirted this question.

The 14th Amendment bans those who took an oath to uphold the Constitution but later engaged in insurrection or rebellion from serving in public office. It was passed following the Civil War to address the conduct of Confederate officials. However, the Supreme Court found that states lack power to enforce this clause for federal positions like the presidency. In a 5-4 ruling, the conservative justices went further to indicate Congress must pass legislation for such enforcement against candidates for national office.

Divided Decision on Scope

In their concurrence, Justices Sotomayor, Kagan, and Jackson agreed the case did not require addressing whether the 14th Amendment could be enforced through other federal means besides legislation. Justice Barrett alone noted Congress may not be the sole enforcer. Legal analysts view this as the court’s conservatives delineating a broader view of states’ inability to interpret and apply the 14th Amendment than their liberal colleagues supported.

The decision hands Trump a major victory by rejecting use of the 14th Amendment to impact his reelection bid just before Super Tuesday primaries. However, it leaves unresolved whether his pre-January 6th actions constituted an “insurrection.” Ongoing criminal cases could still prove problematic, with the 14th Amendment’s constitutionality and application certain to continue spurring legal debate.