Why the 14th Amendment may not disqualify 'loathsome' Trump from running for president

18 September 2023

Some of Donald Trump critics have been arguing that he is disqualified from running for president in 2024 under Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution's 14th Amendment. And those critics aren't necessarily Democrats.

According to retired Judge J. Michael Luttig — a staunch conservative — Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election results disqualify him because Section 3 prohibits "insurrection or rebellion."

Another conservative legal figure who has made a Section 3 argument against Trump is Steven Calabresi, a founder of the right-wing Federalist Society. But Calabresi, the New York Times' Adam Liptak reports, has changed his mind.

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Calabesi, who teaches at Northwestern University in the Chicago area, recently said, "Trump is ineligible to be on the ballot, and each of the 50 state secretaries of state has an obligation to print ballots without his name on them."

But Calabresi is now saying that he no longer believes Section 3 applies to Trump.

In a letter to the Wall Street Journal on September 12, Calabresi said, "Former President Donald Trump isn't covered by the disqualification clause, and he is eligible to be on the ballot in the 2024 presidential election."

Calabresi said he changed his mind because of an argument by former U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey, who served under President George W. Bush.

Writing for the libertarian Reason on September 16, Calabresi argued, "Trump is loathsome, but because of a technicality in the drafting of the disqualification clause of Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, the clause does not apply to Trump. So, Trump's name should appear on election ballots in the 2024 presidential election, but I strongly urge my fellow Americans to vote against Trump, almost no matter what else is the alternative."

The New York Times' full report is available at this link (subscription required).

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