Trump Continues To Test The Constitution’s Limits

David Kurtz
·4 min read
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A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo. Sign up for the email version.

Trump Appeals Colorado DQ Case To SCOTUS

The 14th Amendment Disqualification Clause case is vying with presidential immunity from prosecution to be the first opportunity the Supreme Court takes to weigh in on holding Donald Trump accountable to the rule of law.

After a few days of biding his time, Trump asked the Supreme Court to accept for review the Colorado Supreme Court decision declaring him ineligible for the GOP primary ballot.

In his filing, Trump argues that:

  • Only Congress — not state courts — can determine whether a candidate is ineligible under the Disqualification Clause.

  • The Disqualification Clause doesn’t apply to the president.

  • Jan. 6 was not an insurrection and Trump did not engage in insurrection.

  • The Colorado court violated the Electors Clause.

  • The Disqualification Clause can be used to bar people from office but not from the ballot.

The Colorado Republican Party has already asked the Supreme Court to take the case, and the winning plaintiffs have agreed that it should. So expect to hear from the Supreme Court at any time, though there’s no precise timeline by which it will decide.

SCOTUS May Get Second Trump Immunity Case

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals has refused Donald Trump’s request for the entire appeals court to rehear his claim of presidential immunity from a civil suit in one of the E. Jean Carroll cases — which means Trump may soon ask the Supreme Court to take the case.

With All Deliberate Speed

Former U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance: What the legal system owes America in the era of Donald Trump

Good Read

WaPo: A right-wing tale of Michigan election fraud had it all — except proof

Florida Man Strikes Again

NBC News: Florida man arrested and accused of threatening to kill Rep. Eric Swalwell and his kids

Georgia Election Official Swatted

Gabriel Sterling, the Georgia election official who famously warned after the 2020 election that Trump’s false claims of voter fraud were going to get someone killed, says he was swatted yesterday:

Three Years After Jan. 6

The anniversary is upon us, and PBS takes a closer look at the long-running citizen-led effort to identify the Jan. 6 rioters at the Capitol — featuring our former colleague Ryan Reilly:

Bomb Threats Against State Capitols

Bomb threats forced evacuations Wednesday in more than a dozen state capitols.

DeSantis’ Surgeon General Is A Piece Of Work

WaPo:

Florida’s top health official called for a halt to using mRNA coronavirus vaccines on Wednesday, contending that the shots could contaminate patients’ DNA — aclaim that has been roundly debunked by public health experts, federal officials and the vaccine companies.

Oh, Texas …

The formerly independent state of Texas continues to push the envelope on immigration policy, and the Biden administration keeps fighting back. So far this week:

  • The Biden administration has asked the Supreme Court to lift the stay that is preventing it from removing the razor wire illegally placed in the Rio Grande by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott.

  • The Biden administration has sued to block the controversial new Texas immigration law that seeks to vest border enforcement authority with the state.

Blast From The Past

MOREHEAD, KY – SEPTEMBER 2: Kim Davis, the Rowan County Clerk of Courts, listens to Robbie Blankenship and Jesse Cruz as they speak with her at the County Clerks Office on September 2, 2015 in Morehead, Kentucky. Citing a sincere religious objection, Davis, an Apostolic Christian, has refused to issue marriage licenses to same sex couples in defiance of a Supreme Court ruling. (Photo by Ty Wright/Getty Images)

Remember Kim Davis?

She was the Kentucky county clerk who refused to issue same-sex marriage licenses in the wake of the Supreme Court’s Obergefell decision.

A federal judge has now ordered her to pay $260,000 in fees and expenses to attorneys for one of the couples that took her to court over her refusal to grant them a marriage license.

So Grateful

Two years ago today, my then-18-year-old son was walking across the street near our DC home when he was hit by a car and nearly killed.

I’ve had this date on my calendar because two years is an important milestone for recovery from a traumatic brain injury like the one he had. Each patient is different, and we know that recovery continues past two years. In Sam’s case, he showed phenomenal recovery after one year and his injuries are now undetectable. But we were advised to take extra care in the first two years to give the brain the maximum chance to heal.

Notwithstanding the sailing accident three months ago in which he and I broke our backs, today represents the day when I can take him out of the bubble wrap in which I’ve encased him, at least in my own mind.

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