Can Trump even be president again?

The Supreme Court grapples with leaving Donald Trump on Colorado's ballot. The Justice Department finished its investigation into President Joe Biden's handling of classified documents. And five Marines were confirmed dead after a helicopter crash.

👋Oh wow, Thursday already? Laura Davis here! It’s time for the news.

But first: 50 pounds of gum. 🍬 The seats at Red Rocks Amphitheater are looking super spiffy, but it took some elbow grease.

Is Trump disqualified from being president again?

The U.S. Supreme Court was in an uncomfortable position Thursday as it considered whether former President Donald Trump is disqualified from being president again.

• What Trump's lawyers say: Allowing states to take him off the ballot – as Colorado and Maine have moved to do – would be anti-democratic and violate the rights of the tens of millions of Americans who want to vote for the GOP frontrunner.

• But on the other side: Allowing him to run again after he refused to accept his 2020 loss − which led to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol − would violate an anti-insurrectionist provision of the Constitution.

• Here’s the issue: Whether Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, a provision added after the Civil War to keep government officials who sided with the Confederacy from returning to power, applies to Trump. The provision bars people who took an oath to support the Constitution from holding office again if they engaged in insurrection. 👉 Our takeaways from the hearing.

• What’s the 14th Amendment, Section 3? What to know.

• Trump’s 5 reasons SCOTUS should keep him on the ballot.

Biden won't face charges for classified records at office, home

The Justice Department notified President Joe Biden it wouldn’t pursue criminal charges for his handling of classified documents, which were found at his former office in Washington, D.C., and his home in Delaware, but the report contained multiple comments that may reinforce public concerns about the 81-year-old president's age and memory. In a report made public Thursday, special counsel Robert Hur said charges would not have been warranted even if department policy didn't foreclose criminal charges against a sitting president. "Our investigation uncovered evidence that President Biden willfully retained and disclosed classified materials after his vice presidency when he was a private citizen," according to the report, which noted in particular classified documents about military and foreign policy in Afghanistan. 🔎 Everything we know from the report.

Real quick

• These Taylor Swift + Travis Kelce cookies are basically fine art.

• Will King Charles abdicate? When 'hell freezes over,' experts say.

• GOP tapped him to work a border bill. Then tore him apart. 

• Floods in California’s big cities make homelessness crisis even worse.

• The Super Bowl is a reminder of how family heritage, nepotism still rule the NFL.

• Frankenstein stories are taking over Hollywood. This time, women are the focus.

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A shooting, an inferno, 6 missing

Investigators on Thursday began searching a house they believe was intentionally set on fire during a shooting that left two police officers injured and six people, including children, unaccounted for. Police responded to a call Wednesday afternoon that an 11-year-old child had been shot in East Lansdowne, Pennsylvania, just outside Philadelphia. They were met with gunfire when they arrived at the house, and two officers were wounded. Then, smoke and flames erupted at the house − a blaze authorities believe was deliberately set. Delaware County District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer called the search for remains in the house "gruesome," describing it as a recovery operation. 👉 Here's everything we know.

5 Marines confirmed dead after helicopter crash

Five U.S. Marines who were aboard a military helicopter that went down in the mountains near San Diego were found dead, authorities said Thursday. The CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter was reported missing Tuesday night during a "routine training flight" from Creech Air Force Base, northwest of Las Vegas, to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego, according to the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing. Efforts to recover the remains of the Marines and equipment have begun and an investigation is underway, officials said. The cause of the crash is still unknown. 👉 What we know.

• Graphics and maps show flight path, crash site.

A break from the news

• 🤕 What causes migraines? They aren't just bad headaches.

• 👀 How to keep your kids away from online scammers.

• 📆 It's the Year of the Dragon: Your guide to the Lunar New Year.

Laura L. Davis is an Audience Editor at USA TODAY. Say hello: laura@usatoday.com.  Support quality journalism like this? Subscribe to USA TODAY here.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Election 2024, Marine helicopter crash: Thursday's news