Section 3 of the 14th Amendment bars any public official who swore an oath to protect the Constitution from holding office if they “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” against it or gave “aid or comfort to the enemies thereof.” Because of Donald Trump’s post-defeat efforts, and his role in attacking his own country’s democracy, the Colorado Supreme Court found him ineligible for the ballot. The resulting litigation has reached the U.S. Supreme Court, which will hear oral arguments tomorrow.
It’s against this backdrop that some of the former president’s more sycophantic allies apparently came up with an idea: Rep. Matt Gaetz launched an effort last week to rally support for a resolution that would simply exonerate the GOP’s presumptive nominee.
Evidently, the Florida Republican found some willing partners. The New York Times reported:
As officials across the country consider whether to bar former President Donald J. Trump from the ballot over his role in the events of Jan. 6, 2021, a contingent of House Republicans are trying to bolster his claim that he did nothing wrong. More than 60 Republicans — led by Representative Matt Gaetz of Florida and Representative Elise Stefanik of New York — said on Tuesday that they had signed onto a resolution declaring that Mr. Trump “did not engage in insurrection.”
Republican Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, still a little a too eager to impress Team Trump, is reportedly championing a companion measure in the upper chamber.
In terms of force of law, the resolution, even if it were to pass the House, wouldn’t have any meaningful impact. It would effectively be a glorified press release in which one half of one chamber formally told the courts, “Despite the evidence, we don’t think Trump should be seen as an insurrectionist.”
The practical, real-world effects basically wouldn’t exist.
But it’s notable anyway for a few reasons. First, the existence of the resolution lends credence to the argument that too many congressional Republicans effectively see themselves as employees of Trump’s political operation.
Second, GOP proponents of the measure were given an opportunity to defend their proposal during a Capitol Hill press conference devoted to the resolution. The result was partisan rhetoric that can fairly be described as bonkers. Third, whether the resolution’s Republican champions want to hear this or not, the facts are clearly not on their side. But even if we put all of this aside, I’m especially curious about one thing: What would happen if House GOP leaders decided to bring the resolution to the floor for an up-or-down vote, and Republicans — including those representing districts that voted Democratic in the 2020 presidential election — were forced to choose between handing Trump a symbolic exoneration or supporting the Constitution? We might not have to wait too long to find out. Watch this space.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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