INSURRECTION CLAUSE: Wheels in motion to ban Trump from ever holding office again
Representative David Cicilline is gathering other Members of Congress in support of legislation that would, under the 14th Amendment’s insurrection clause, bar Donald Trump from ever holding office again. He says evidence that Trump helped plan the January 6th attack is a part of the bill.
Cicilline, who served as impeachment manager on Trump’s second impeachment — that’s the one for trying to overthrow the United States government by interfering with the outcome of a free and fair election — is contacting other lawmakers to inform them he’s drafted legislation that gathers evidence and testimony to support the conclusion that Trump “engaged in insurrection.”
The evidence, he says, shows that Trump not only encouraged the attack on January 6th, but helped plan it.
In the letter, apparently initially sent before Trump’s Tuesday evening announcement, Cicilline says that Trump has “forfeited the right to ever hold federal office again,” through his actions surrounding January 6th. He’s calling for legislators to respond by noon on Thursday, suggesting that he intends to publicly introduce the bill shortly after that deadline — perhaps by the end of the week.
The potential use of the insurrection clause to bar legislators involved in the January 6th attack from returning to office has been debated and attempted in three cases — Representatives Marjorie Taylor Greene and Madison Cawthorn, and County Commissioner Couy Griffin of Otero County, New Mexico. To date, Griffin is the only case in which it has been successful.
From a copy of the letter obtained by CNN:
It specifically details how Donald Trump engaged in insurrection when he helped plan and encouraged the insurgence on January 6th despite knowing that the election results were lawful; attempted to intimidate state and federal officials when they did not support his false claims and unlawful plans; tried to manipulate Mike pence into unlawfully refusing to certify the election results despite Mr. Pence’s and legal advisors’ assertion that he held no such authority; and supported the violent insurrection at the Capitol on January 6th, refusing for hours to denounce or act against the mob and putting thousands of lives in danger.
As Trump announces bid, Dem Rep. David Cicilline is circulating legislation to bar Donald Trump from holding office, citing the 14th Amendment that bans individuals from holding office who have engaged in an insurrection. Letter sent to colleagues: pic.twitter.com/vQDiE0enUB
— Manu Raju (@mkraju) November 16, 2022
