While speaking with reporters outside of the White House on Tuesday morning, President Joe Biden was asked whether he thinks Donald Trump should appear on the 2024 ballot.
“As far as I’m concerned, that’s fine,” Biden responded with a smile.
Dozens of 14th Amendment challenges to Trump’s eligibility have been considered by courts, election boards, or secretaries of state over the past year. Section 3 of the 14th Amendment — which was originally written with Confederates in mind — prohibits anyone who has previously taken an oath of office from holding public office if they have “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” against the United States government. The Colorado Supreme Court and Maine’s secretary of state have ruled that Trump is ineligible to appear on those two states' primary ballots due to that “insurrection clause,” arguing it applies to his actions on January 6th. The Illinois Board of Elections voted on Tuesday to dismiss a challenge to Trump’s eligibility, therefore allowing him to remain on the state’s presidential primary ballot, although an appeal is likely.
Trump’s qualifications to hold the highest office in the country again have also been called into question due to his many legal issues — including Friday’s verdict in the E. Jean Carroll case, which ordered the former president to pay the writer an additional $83.3 million for defamation.
