Let the People of Colorado Vote – WSJ

The justices of the Colorado Supreme Court were appointed entirely by Democrats. The good news is they re not all ideological hacks. The bad news is that a slim majority of the court has just engaged in a disgraceful intervention to prevent the state s voters from choosing who they wish to serve as America s 47th president.

The Journal s Mariah Timms reports:

Donald Trump can t appear on the 2024 presidential primary ballot in Colorado because of his actions surrounding the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol, the state s highest court ruled Tuesday.

The first-of-its kind decision sided with a group of Colorado voters who argued in a lawsuit that the Republican front-runner was disqualified under a clause in the 14th Amendment. Enacted after the Civil War, the provision disqualifies from public office those who swore to defend the Constitution and then engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the U.S.

President Trump incited and encouraged the use of violence and lawless action to disrupt the peaceful transfer of power, the Colorado Supreme Court said in a 4-to-3 ruling.

But of course Donald Trump has not been convicted of insurrection or incitement or any such thing. That s why dissenting Colorado Supreme Court Justice Carlos Samour writes about one of the bedrock principles of American democracy:

Our government cannot deprive someone of the right to hold public office without due process of law. Even if we are convinced that a candidate committed horrible acts in the past dare I say, engaged in insurrection there must be procedural due process before we can declare that individual disqualified from holding public office. Procedural due process is one of the aspects of America s democracy that sets this country apart.

… The decision to bar former President Donald J. Trump ( President Trump ) by all accounts the current leading Republican presidential candidate (and reportedly the current leading overall presidential candidate) from Colorado s presidential primary ballot flies in the face of the due process doctrine.

via www.wsj.com

The dissent seems right to me. Surely there is a big due process problem here. Just in case you worry about that sort of thing.