Author: staff

Supreme Court ruled unanimously today that states do not have the authority to remove Donald Trump from the 2024 presidential ballot based on his alleged role in the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. The court ruled that only Congress, not states, can disqualify a presidential candidate under the Constitution’s “insurrection clause.”

The court’s decision overturns a Colorado ruling that would have removed Trump from the ballot in that state and effectively nullifies similar challenges in other states. The ruling was expected, as justices signaled discomfort with allowing individual states to assess the eligibility of presidential candidates accused of insurrection during oral arguments.

The opinion, labeled “per curiam,” emphasized the potential chaos of allowing states to make such judgments, leading to inconsistent and conflicting rulings across the country.

While the court did not assess Trump’s role in the Capitol attack, it referenced the incident in the context of the case’s chronology. Notably, the three liberal justices wrote a separate opinion agreeing with the result but expressing concerns about the court’s broad ruling.

Justice Amy Coney Barrett also wrote a separate opinion emphasizing the unanimity of the decision and calling for national unity.

The case originated in Colorado, where a government watchdog group organized challengers arguing Trump’s ineligibility to run based on the Capitol attack. Despite the ruling, the Supreme Court agreed to hear Trump’s challenge to a federal appeals court ruling rejecting his claims of presidential immunity from criminal charges related to his attempts to overturn the 2020 election results.

The ruling could dictate whether Trump faces a federal trial in Washington during late summer or fall, coinciding with the height of the presidential campaign.

The justices did not deliver the ruling in person but released it online and to the press and public on paper.

Former President Donald Trump is poised to make significant strides toward securing the GOP nomination on Super Tuesday, where 15 states will hold their Republican primary contests. With a combined 874 delegates, representing 72% of the total needed for a majority, up for grabs, Trump’s path to victory appears increasingly assured.

Leading in polls across multiple major Super Tuesday states, including Texas and California, Trump enjoys substantial advantages over his final challenger, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley. According to FiveThirtyEight’s polling averages, Trump holds a commanding 64 and 54-point lead in Texas and California, respectively.

While none of the Super Tuesday states award delegates on a winner-take-all basis, Trump enters the critical primary day with 244 delegates, compared to Haley’s 43. Trump’s campaign is optimistic about his prospects, predicting that he could secure the nomination as soon as March 12, based on calculations combining polling results in upcoming primary states with delegate availability.

The Super Tuesday lineup includes states such as Alabama, Arkansas, Massachusetts, and Virginia, among others, where Trump is expected to perform strongly. Haley, who has pledged to remain in the race at least until Super Tuesday, faces mounting pressure to reconsider her candidacy following the contests.

Despite facing multiple ongoing criminal and civil cases, Trump’s dominance within the Republican Party remains unshaken, with polls consistently showing him leading by double digits for months. A rematch between Trump and President Joe Biden in the 2024 presidential election appears increasingly likely, with polls indicating a tight race.

On the Democratic side, Biden has secured all 206 delegates in the four primaries held so far, solidifying his frontrunner status. While long-shot candidates like Rep. Dean Phillips and author Marianne Williamson continue their primary bids, Biden remains the odds-on favorite to secure the Democratic nomination, needing 1,968 out of the total 3,934 delegates available.