Donald Trump Is Unfit for Office Under 14th Amendment, Says Democratic Representative Jamie Raskin

Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) asserts that former President Donald Trump should be deemed ineligible for future office under the provisions of the 14th Amendment. According to HuffPost, this viewpoint has garnered increased attention as Trump faces mounting legal challenges and the 2024 presidential election season gains momentum.

According to The Hill, Dana Bash of CNN inquired during "State of the Union" whether Rep. Jamie Raskin concurred with the evaluation made by GOP presidential candidate Asa Hutchinson. Hutchinson suggested that Trump might be disqualified from seeking office based on the 14th Amendment, which prohibits the election of individuals who "have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof.”

“Well, absolutely, and we’ve been saying all along that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment presents a clear and unequivocal statement that anyone who has sworn an oath of office, and by the way not just the president but members of Congress and others who hold federal office, who engage in insurrection or rebellion, having sworn an oath to uphold the Constitution against enemies foreign and domestic, can never serve again in federal or state office,” Raskin told Bash.

The amendment bars any elected official from assuming office if they have taken part in an insurrection or rebellion against the United States or provided assistance to its adversaries. However, it also states that Congress has the authority to vote and lift this restriction from the individual in question. “And this was added after the Civil War as a general constitutional principle, and we have to abide by it. Donald Trump was impeached by the House of Representatives for inciting an insurrection against the union, and then 57 of 100 senators determined as a constitutional fact that Donald Trump had incited an insurrection,” he further added.

Hutchinson has previously raised doubts about Trump's presidential eligibility under the 14th Amendment, citing legal scholars' opinions that the former President may not qualify due to his involvement on January 6th: “I’m not going to support somebody who’s been convicted of a serious felony or who is disqualified under our Constitution,” Hutchinson said. 

Raskin echoed this argument, citing the views of legal experts who have similarly asserted that Trump has rendered himself ineligible, as reported by The Hill. “So I think you’ve got robust, bicameral, bipartisan majorities that have already established this as a fact, and I agree with the conservative Federalist Society law professors who are out there saying as well as Mr. Hutchinson that Donald Trump is disqualified just as if he were running and not a born U.S. citizen or if he were running and he were 24 years old,” Raskin said, according to  The Hill.

The issue of Donald Trump's potential eligibility for future presidential runs, as raised by Democratic Representative Jamie Raskin, is a subject of vigorous debate and contention. Although the precise legal and political consequences of this argument remain unclear, it's evident that the discussion regarding Trump's political prospects is ongoing and far from settled.