• derf82@lemmy.world
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    4 months ago

    A nonsensical ruling.

    The section specifically says congress can allow someone to hold office with a 2/3rds vote. How does it make any sense that it also takes specific congressional action to disqualify someone? A simple majority could stop that.

    They even noted on a footnote a case where a 2/3rds majority voted to seat a former confederate. Yet they didn’t bother to outline how he was disqualified to start with. It wasn’t congressional action.

    And they exceed legal thoughts as the suppose there needs to be uniformity so the president is president for all. History is filled with candidates that didn’t appear on the ballot is some states. Lincoln wasn’t on the ballot in some southern states. Like it or not, that is how it works.

    And while the majority was rightfully chided for going beyond the question presented, shame on the liberals for ruling to protect their federal power rather than protecting the integrity of elections. I hated the oral arguments where they were all saying it “feels” like a federal question. If you want it to be a federal question, amend the constitution so the feds are in charge of elections. Until then, states have the right to decide who is on their ballot.

    • m0darn
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      4 months ago

      What about a motion in congress to exempt Donald Trump under the 14th amendment? If it failed to get 2/3 approval would that defacto mean he is barred from office?

      Sorry if that’s a dumb question, I’m not American.

      • Bgugi@lemmy.world
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        4 months ago

        Simple answer: this process could be used to disqualify essentially any candidate.

        • m0darn
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          4 months ago

          …And yet it hasn’t been used in 150 years

    • Natanael@slrpnk.net
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      4 months ago

      States should still have full power to tell their own electors who they can and can’t vote for, congress deliberately can’t control that and SCOTUS can’t tell them what rules to use. Ballot access don’t matter if votes for the traitor are void by default.