Chris Christie Has a Unexpected Reaction to Trump's Removal From the State's 2024 Ballot

Chris Christie commented on the Colorado Supreme Court's ruling to remove former President Donald Trump off the state's ballot, stating that people, not judges, should determine whether or not Trump should be "prevented" from winning reelection to the White House. As reported by CNN, Christie stated, "What I will say is I do not believe Donald Trump should be prevented from being President of the United States, by any court. I think he should be prevented from being the President of the United States by the voters of this country."

He further explained, "I think it’s bad for the country if that happens. Now, the other reason I believe that is because, you know, he will have had to incite insurrection, be a part of an insurrection for him to be excluded. There’s been no trial of him on that." Christie said that while he has "very strong feelings about Trump's actions on Jan. 6," he also firmly thinks that individuals should get a trial and jury verdict before having their "rights taken away from them." Christie is one of those people who made criticizing Trump the centerpiece of his presidential campaign. He added, "So I know it will be counterintuitive to a lot of people who listen to me about Donald Trump, but I hope it just goes to prove [to] you: I don’t hate him at all. I just think what he’s done is horribly wrong and that he has reserved the right that we would give him as voters [the chance] to lead us again."

The 14th Amendment forbids anybody who "engaged in an insurrection" from holding public office, and the Colorado Supreme Court rendered the historic decision on Tuesday. A 4-3 majority of the court determined that the former president is unable to run for president under this clause. As reported by CNN, the ruling stated, "When President Trump told his supporters that they were ‘allowed to go by very different rules’ and that if they did not ‘fight like hell,’ they would not ‘have a country anymore,’ it was likely that his supporters would heed his encouragement and act violently. We do not reach these conclusions lightly. We are mindful of the magnitude and weight of the questions now before us. We are likewise mindful of our solemn duty to apply the law, without fear or favor, and without being swayed by public reaction to the decisions that the law mandates we reach."

With the ruling postponed until January 4, one day before the Republican primary nomination deadline, Trump will have little over two weeks to file an appeal. The decision opens the door for other states to possibly follow suit, even though it only pertains to Colorado's ballot and might be reversed by the conservative-leaning US Supreme Court on appeal. On Tuesday, the Trump team said that they would file an appeal with the highest court in the country over the ruling.