The Supreme Court has expressed doubts about Colorado's decision to disqualify Donald Trump from running for president.
A landmark case that could decide whether the former president can run in the November election has heard arguments from both sides of the case while Trump appeals the decision.
the supreme court It has a 6-3 conservative majority, after Trump appointed three justices while in the White House, and all but one of the nine justices appeared skeptical about upholding the lower court's ruling in Thursday's opening hearing.
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Colorado The court ruled in December that Trump was ineligible to participate in the Republican primary ballot because he participated in the insurrection during the 2021 US Capitol riot.
However, Trump's lawyers argue that the January 6 attacks were a “riot,” not an insurrection.
Chief Justice John Roberts said that if Colorado's decision is upheld, other states would also take recusal actions, adding, “It will be limited to a small number of states that will decide the presidential election, which is a very shocking outcome.”
The case will be decided by referring to the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution, which prohibits anyone who has “participated in insurrection or rebellion” from competing in elections.
The legal challenge was filed on behalf of six Colorado residents, four of whom are Republicans, by the watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) and two law firms.
Trump's lawyer, Jonathan Mitchell, said his client is not subject to the Constitution's disqualification language because the president is not an “officer of the United States,” a title that means an appointed official, when elected.
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Trump, who was not in court, told reporters that attempts to prevent him from running are “election interference” and claimed that “Every one of these cases [against him] Coming out of the White House, from [President Joe] Biden“.
One of them, in GeorgiaHe said the presidential election, where he was accused of trying to cancel the election, was a “false hoax,” adding, “I hope democracy continues in this country.”
He also repeated his well-worn complaints about immigrants, who, he said, “are coming out of prisons and mental institutions, and many of them are terrorists.”
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Earlier, he told a conservative radio show host that Biden's allies are trying to exploit the Colorado case to remove him from the presidential competition.
“They want the Supreme Court to rule or vote to take me out of the race. That would be absolutely terrible. It's about voting. It's about our Constitution,” he said.
Attempts were made to exclude him in other states, against the backdrop of the riots that occurred on January 6, but most of them failed.
He was also barred from running in Maine, a decision that has been put on hold pending the Supreme Court's ruling in the Colorado case.
The Colorado Republican Party's primary elections take place on March 5.
