Insurrectionist law now targeting more than 130 Republicans: report
Former President Donald Trump has been set up for a high-profile legal battle over his ballot eligibility, with challenges under the Constitution's 14th Amendment's Insurrection Clause advancing in Colorado and Maine, and others in the pipeline in a number of other states.
But Trump is not alone in this — according to Newsweek, these challenges are popping up all over the Republican landscape.
"Since the 2020 election, at least 134 Republicans, including Trump, have faced legal challenges questioning whether they are qualified to hold office," reported Andrew Stanton.
So far, almost none of these challenges led to anyone being disqualified from office, with one notable exception: Couy Griffin, the former Otero County, New Mexico commissioner and founder of Cowboys for Trump who was convicted of January 6 charges.
One of the most recent such challenges is Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA), who was implicated as a key point person trying to help Trump administration officials help get the election overturned.
Many of these challenges actually came before the January 6 attack; Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-NJ) urged more than 100 GOP members of Congress who backed lawsuits to overturn the election to be denied seats in the House.
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"Stated simply, men and women who would act to tear the United States government apart cannot serve as Members of the Congress," he wrote. "These lawsuits seeking to obliterate public confidence in our democratic system by invalidating the clear results of the 2020 presidential election attack the text and spirit of the Constitution, which each Member swears to support and defend, as well as violate the Rules of our House of Representatives, which explicitly forbid Members from committing unbecoming acts that reflect poorly on our chamber."
The Trump disqualification challenges appear all but certain to be taken up by the U.S. Supreme Court. Many legal experts believe they are likely to overturn the decisions and let Trump on the ballot, although some have argued it would actually benefit the GOP to uphold them.