Political analyst Mark Halperin cautioned Friday that as President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration nears, efforts to prevent him from taking office are likely to intensify. In a Thursday column for The Hill, liberal attorneys Evan Davis and David Schulte argued that Congress could still block Trump from assuming office on Jan. 20 by rejecting electoral votes on Jan. 6, claiming he is disqualified under the 14th Amendment.
Speaking on American Agenda, Halperin predicted that as the initial shock of Trump’s November victory wears off, more voices on the left will join in opposition to his second term, following the attorneys’ lead. “It seems ill-timed, not just not in the spirit of the holiday season, but also given where we are in the transition cycle … we’re gonna see more of this. I think the left has been a little bit shocked by the election results,” Halperin said. “And I think as the reality of January 20th gets closer, Ithink you’ll see more opinionizing just like this.”
Host Jessie Jane Duff later asked Halperin about the motivation for publishing the column in The Hill. “I try not to speculate on people’s motives if I don’t have reporting, so I don’t really know. But again, The Hill likes to get attention, so that could be part of it,” he said. “But it also reflects a point of view that’s held by tens of millions of Americans … I think that you’re gonna see more manifestations like this as we get closer to inauguration day.”
The Supreme Court in February rejected Colorado’s attempt to eliminate Trump from the state’s 2024 ballot due to Congress, not states being “responsible for enforcing Section 3 against federal officeholders and candidates.” Section 3 of the 14th Amendment states that no individual should hold elected office if they “have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.”
“The unlikelihood of congressional Republicans doing anything that might elect Harris as president is obvious,” Davis and Schulte wrote in their Thursday column. “But Democrats need to take a stand against Electoral College votes for a person disqualified by the Constitution from holding office unless and until this disability is removed. No less is required by their oath to support and defend the Constitution.” That said, most leading Democrats told Politico this week they won’t be objecting to certifying Trump’s victory.
