Throughout my professional career, I have said it many times and in many ways: belief is reality. Oh, I wish I could relive those moments! Not only because of my terrible tendency to incorporate profanity into my editing of the cliché, but because the cliché itself has taken hold of many of us.
In 2024, the war between the genuine and the real will be epic.
Yes, yes, this is a great election year, the latest in a series of the most vital elections of our lifetimes. And nothing puts more strain on the continuum of faith and truth than election season. This year, it’s pretty much the total game.
Let’s talk about the damn Fourteenth Amendment and other problematic legislation that will have an effect on the presidential race. The endless legal saga of former President Donald Trump is floor 0 in the war between belief and reality. His biggest recent problem, being excluded from elections in Colorado and Maine, has spurred debates and conversations straight from the Twilight Zone.
Too many politicians in both parties are pandering to the electorate by believing that Trump’s return to the White House deserves to be through elections alone. Of course, we all agree with the election authority, even if Trump and his supporters weren’t in 2020. Many of them still aren’t. But before the electorate can cast their ballot for a year, applicants will have to be qualified to hold office.
Article II, Section 1, Clause Five of the United States Constitution establishes the requirements to be president. We learned it in school number one: the user will have to be a citizen by birth, be at least 3 five years old and have lived in the country for the last 14 years.
The Fourteenth Amendment, passed after the Civil War, replaced those characterizations to save those guilty of infiltrating public service in the newly restored union. The transparent and enforceable language of segment 3 reads: “No one shall. . . “Hold a position. . . (after) participating in or opposing an insurrection, or aiding or abetting its enemies. “
The language is simple. It’s awkward right now, but it’s still transparent and enforceable. And the truth is that this is a legal issue, not a political one. There is no price for politicians who proclaim “let the electorate decide!”The Constitution does not allow itself to be set aside by the whims of the moment. This has never been the case before and there is no explanation for doing it now.
For Trump and his supporters, good luck at the Supreme Court in January.
The question of presidential immunity for Trump’s acts related to the insurrection will likely be decided this month too. The reality here is that over 700 people have been convicted of crimes related to January 6. There is a truckload of evidence implicating Trump’s criminal role in it. Too many Americans think this is also something to be decided by public sentiment. Nope. Not in the moment it’s not. The political process can lead to new laws in the future, but we don’t vote on the applicability of laws as they exist now, or in the past.
Neither of these issues will be decided by public commentary or creative social media posts. They will be decided in court, as they should be, even though the legal questions really aren’t that complicated.
For SCOTUS to interpret the insurrectionary language of the Fourteenth Amendment as not applying to Trump will require some effort. Perhaps they will simply say that the conviction is mandatory or that he was not technically a government “official” when he was president. But this will require a resolution that abandons the virtues of “textualism” so dear to this court.
As for the presidential immunity factor, SCOTUS will have to do much more than check to rule in Trump’s favor. It will be mandatory to create an imaginary counter-review. Although this court has undermined my confidence in him with its recent decisions, that simply won’t happen. Trump will be tried in all of his felon cases. It is also a fantasy that will escape conviction in all 4 cases.
This unprecedented legal saga will end badly for Trump in 2024, not because other people of my ilk like it, but because crime and the law are so clear. There is no escape for him based on reality.
America is either a nation of laws or it isn’t. It’s often inconvenient and imperfect, but our laws have served us better than any one person ever could. That’s reality.
Many feel that Trump is more than just a fact. When the truth, in spite of everything, prevails, I hope we will all be ready.
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by Michael Leppert, Indiana Capital Chronicle January 2, 2024
Throughout my professional career, I have said it many times and in many ways: belief is reality. Oh, I wish I could relive those moments! Not only because of my terrible tendency to incorporate profanity into my editing of the cliché, but because the cliché itself has taken hold of so many of us.
In 2024, the war between the genuine and the real will be epic.
Yes, yes, it’s a big election year, the latest in a streak of the-most-important-elections-of-our-lifetimes. And nothing strains the perception and reality continuum more than election season. This year, that is practically the entire game.
Let’s talk about the pesky Fourteenth Amendment and other inconvenient laws that will impact the presidential race. The never-ending legal saga of former President Donald Trump is ground zero of the perception versus reality war. His most recent problem of being removed from the ballot in Colorado and Maine has inspired debate and conversation that is straight out of the Twilight Zone.
Too many politicians from both parties are pandering to voters by taking the position that Trump’s quest to return to the White House should be decided solely by the election. Of course, we all agree with the authority of elections, even though Trump and his supporters didn’t agree with it in 2020. Many of them still don’t. But before voters get to decide in any year, candidates must be qualified to hold the office.
Article II, Section 1, Clause 5 of the U.S. Constitution establishes the qualifications to be president. We learned about these in elementary school: the person must by a natural born citizen, at least 35 years of age, and must have lived in the country for the previous 14 years.
The Fourteenth Amendment, passed after the Civil War, replaced those characterizations to save those guilty of infiltrating public service in the newly restored union. The transparent and enforceable language of segment 3 reads: “No one shall. . . “Hold a position. . . (after) participating in or opposing an insurrection, or aiding or abetting its enemies. “
The language is simple. It’s awkward right now, but it’s still transparent and enforceable. And the truth is that this is a legal issue, not a political one. There is no price for politicians who proclaim “let the electorate decide!”The Constitution does not allow itself to be set aside by the whims of the moment. This has never been the case before and there is no explanation for doing it now.
For Trump and his supporters, good luck at the Supreme Court in January.
The question of presidential immunity for Trump’s moves like the insurrection will likely come up this month as well. The truth is that more than 700 people have been convicted of crimes like the one on January 6. There is a wealth of evidence implicating Trump’s criminal role. in this case. Too many Americans think it’s also something they want to be through public opinion. No. At the moment no, it is not. The political procedure would possibly lead to new legislation in the future, but we did not vote on the applicability of legislation as it exists today or in the past.
Neither of these issues will be decided by public commentary or creative social media posts. They will be decided in court, as they should be, even though the legal questions really aren’t that complicated.
For SCOTUS to interpret the insurrectionary language of the Fourteenth Amendment as not applying to Trump, it will have to put in some effort. They may simply say that a conviction is mandatory or that he was not technically “an official” of the government when he was president. But that will require a resolution that abandons the virtues of “textualism” so dear to this court.
On the question of presidential immunity, SCOTUS will have to do much more than try to make a decision in Trump’s favor. You’ll need to create an imaginary exit account. Although this court has undermined my confidence in him with its recent decisions, that would not possibly happen. Trump will face trial in all of his felon cases. It is also a fantasy that will escape conviction in all 4 cases.
This unprecedented legal saga will end badly for Trump in 2024, not because other people of my ilk like it, but because crime and the law are so clear. There is no escape for him based on reality.
Either the United States is a country of legislation or it is not. It is shameful and flawed, but our legislation has served us more than anyone could ever serve us. That’s the reality.
Many are under the impression that Trump is more than just a fact. When the truth prevails in spite of everything, I hope we will all be prepared.
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Indiana Capital Chronicle is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Indiana Capital Chronicle maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Niki Kelly for questions: [email protected]. Follow Indiana Capital Chronicle on Facebook and Twitter.
Michael Leppert is an author, educator, and communicator in Indianapolis. He writes about government, politics, and culture in MichaelLeppert. com.
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