The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear former President Donald Trump's appeal against a court ruling barring him from participating in the Republican primary in Colorado, writes UNN with reference to the Voice of America.
Details
This is the Colorado Supreme Court decision of December 19, according to which Trump cannot be admitted to the primaries. The court cited the provision of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits insurgents from holding public office, and linked it to the attack by Trump supporters on the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
The U.S. Supreme Court took up the case with unusual speed. Trump, the favorite in the race to officially become the Republican Party's presidential nominee, filed an appeal on Wednesday. The justices signaled they would expedite their decision by scheduling oral arguments between the parties for Feb. 8. The Colorado primary is scheduled for March 5.
The nine-member U.S. Supreme Court is currently dominated by a conservative majority of six justices, three of whom were appointed by Trump. The Colorado case has embroiled the highest court in an unprecedented and politicized effort by opponents of the former president to deny him the opportunity to re-enter the White House, the publication notes.
Trump spokesman Stephen Cheung praised the court's decision to hear the case. He characterized the disqualification effort as "part of a well-funded effort by left-wing political activists obsessed with preventing President Trump from being legally re-elected in November, even if it means disenfranchising voters.
Colorado Secretary of State Jenna Griswold said the people of her state and the entire United States "deserve clarity on whether a person involved in sedition can run for the highest office in the land.
Many Republicans condemn disqualification efforts as election interference. At the same time, supporters of disqualification believe that holding Trump constitutionally accountable for sedition upholds democratic values. Trump already faces criminal charges in two cases related to his attempt to undo his defeat in the 2020 election, which was won by Joe Biden.
Supplement
Trump also filed a complaint in a Maine court against a decision by the state's top election official barring him from running in the primary under the same constitutional amendment.