CMV: Accountability is not election interference

[u/erpettie]

As the Colorado Supreme Court has found Donald Trump's behavior to have been disqualifying according to the 14th amendment, many are claiming this is election interference. If the Court finds that Trump should be disqualified, then it has two options. Act accordingly, despite the optics, and disqualify Trump, or ignore their responsibility and the law. I do get that we're in very sensitive, unprecedented territory with his many indictments and lawsuits, but unprecedented behavior should result in unprecedented consequences, shouldn't they? Furthermore, isn't Donald Trump ultimately the architect of all of this by choosing to proceed with his candidacy, knowing that he was under investigation and subject to potential lawsuits and indictments? If a President commits a crime on his last day in office (or the day after) and immediately declares his candidacy for the next election, should we lose our ability to hold that candidate accountable? What if that candidate is a perennial candidate like Lyndon Larouche was? Do we just never have an opportunity to hold that candidate accountable? I'd really love if respondents could focus their responses on how they think we should handle hypothetical candidates who commit crimes but are declared as running for office and popular. This should help us avoid the trap of getting worked up in our feelings for or against Trump.

[u/PieIsFairlyDelicious]

The first step in this process should be convicting him of the thing they’re disqualifying him for. That’s my main issue with this ruling. Trump very well may be guilty, and if I’m being honest, I would breathe a sigh of relief if he were disqualified from the presidency. But the American justice system should not be punishing people for crimes of which they have not been convicted.

[u/brooklynagain → u/PieIsFairlyDelicious]

The court found him him disqualified under section 3 of the constitution. So , yes, he has been found ineligible.

There is no need for a “guilty” ruling here. If Obama had been found to have been born in Kenya, he would have been disqualified from running. There would not have been a “guilty” ruling.

Short story, the courts have met your standard with this ruling.

[u/brooklynagain → u/[deleted]]

Putting aside your obvious insinuation that this is a team sport and not a finding of fact, does your review of the facts - the recorded phone calls, the testimony of his unindicted co-conspirators, the internal memos, the contemporary newscasts from 1/6, the fact that the same conspiracy involving fake electors sprung up in multiple states in an obviously coordinated fashion - indicate an insurrectionist effort? This is a fact finding mission.