The US Supreme Court has agreed to consider whether Colorado can ban Donald Trump from the presidential ballot, setting the stage for a potentially landmark legal decision that will have implications for the 2024 US election. The court’s move will put the spotlight on its nine justices, three of whom were appointed by the former president when he was in office. The court has been wary of intervening in the multiple lawsuits now facing Trump, however, and judges have repeatedly ruled against him in cases linked to the 2020 election.
The ruling in Colorado was the first time the 14th Amendment has been used to bar a presidential candidate. The amendment was adopted in 1868 following the American Civil War and was intended to prevent officials from the Confederacy of breakaway states from holding public office again. It has been invoked so rarely that the Supreme Court has never been called upon to interpret it.
The Colorado case is not the only Trump-related case likely heading to the Supreme Court. The highest court will probably separately consider the question of whether Trump is “absolutely immune” from federal prosecution for crimes allegedly committed while he was in the White House. Trump has argued that this presidential immunity protects him from prosecution. He is facing 91 criminal charges across four cases, including two prosecutions being led by special counsel Jack Smith.
The Supreme Court’s reputation in the eyes of voters is already damaged by adverse publicity concerning Clarence Thomas’s financial connections to rich friends and his wife’s pro-Trump advocacy.
This February is working up to be a troubled month with Pluto, the Sun and Mercury in Aquarius with Mars joining in to form a high-octane, aggravated conjunction with Pluto on the 14th and Venus moving into Aquarius two days later with an emotionally intense conjunction to Pluto on the 17th. Feelings will run high around mid month.
The Supreme Court, 2 February 1790 is a Sun Pluto in Aquarius so will be sensitive to the mood. Its chart is on high-alert and edgy at the moment with tr Uranus opposition the Sun/Mars conjunction till mid March and rattled, tripping over setbacks and feeling unpopular 16 to 23 February. It will be sighing with relief in the weeks after mid March; though not entirely, with a disappointed or unpopular tr Neptune conjunct the Venus early March to early April (and returning early October to early February 2025 across the election and Inauguration). It will be moving through catastrophe territory from April 7th this year till late month.
The relationship chart between SCOTUS and the USA does indicate a tussle for the upper hand and over who has the last word from February till early April 2024 and again off and on through the year and through 2025. The Supreme Court’s arrogance will be on the show and be tested.
Senior Justice John Roberts is in a state of agitation about or with the Supreme Court with tr Pluto opposition their composite Uranus from late February onwards and tr Uranus opposition the composite Pluto from late April.
Donald Trump does have good luck running alongside less favourable influences and, given the plethora of legal cases he is fending off, it is impossible to work out what refers to which. Tr Uranus will aspect two of his Jupiter midpoints now till mid March and again from then till early April 2024. But he also has tr Pluto opposition his Saturn/Pluto midpoint late February to early April (again late May to early July, and throughout January 2025) which suggests a tough struggle to make any progress, can be destructive, loss of possessions (that could be his NY legal case for fraud which may remove his business licence and land him with punitive fines.) He also has tr Neptune opposition his Mars/Jupiter midpoint early March to early April (and again early October to early February 2025) = feeling inferior, a failure, plans without hope of realization.
Trump’s relationship chart with the Supreme Court will be badly rattled and oddly relieved at the same time come late April to mid May with tr Uranus conjunct the composite Saturn and trine the Jupiter (those three weeks are highlighted across a few of the related charts) – and again very aggravated in July 2024 when tr Uranus squares the composite Mars and is conjunct the Venus.
America fighting its soul.
On the 11am start time I use it puts Mars in the legal 9th which the SA Saturn is now within less than a degree of being conjunct which will be a considerable jolt/setback/collision. Even on Sibley it has Neptune in the 9th which is square the US Mars so the SA Saturn will reverberate with its Neptune as well.
Oregon wanted to remove Drompf but will await the SCOTUS decision.
I think many of my fellow Americans have figured out that if one is clever enough – which you’d need to be to get a position on the Supreme Court – you can take any conclusion you’ve already chosen, and write it up to look like it’s the inevitable, one and only way to interpret the Constitution and the law.
Everything else in the federal government has checks and balances: a large enough vote in Congress can override a Presidential veto, Congress must approve appointees, the voters can toss out all the politicians at the next election, etc.
But the Supreme Court justices are appointed for life with no way at all to recall or muzzle them. Other than waiting for one to die and trying to stack the deck with their replacement.
What the Supremes say about an ordinary law can be overturned by passing a new law, but what they say about the meaning of the Constitution doesn’t have to make any sense. For example Roe vs. Wade was based on “an emanation from the penumbra” of the Constitution which literally means the part that shines brightly because it’s made darker by the edge of the shadow – say what! That’s literally meaningless in English! (I’m not referring to the social value of the ruling, only an example of how unaccountable the Supreme Court is.)
For good or bad, we’re stuck with their interpretation – as long as our system of government lasts – unless the Constitution is amended (deliberately fiercely difficult and unlikely in any one person’s lifetime), or unless the Supreme Court later says “No, it means THIS now.” As they have done several times in the past, with a new definition of the allegedly obvious, inevitable, logical one and only thing the same words must mean – which is opposite from what the Court previously said they mean.
The Supreme Court is the only part of the Constitution where the democratic process is designed to lead to a non-democratic appointee for life… our mini-Lords but with ultimate say.
One of the issues will be whether the 14th Amendment applies when no lower court has made a ruling that there was an attempted insurrection. I have endless confidence in the ability of the Justices to pick and choose and twist the language of the Constitution any way they’ll need to, to justify the conclusion they already believe in.
At the immunity hearing today the judges asked a number of questions including i“Could a president order SEAL Team Six to assassinate a political rival? That is an official act by the president to order SEAL Team Six?” the answer from Trump’s council was “yes” since he wasn’t impeached and removed from office he has absolute immunity. ….apparently that includes murder! All while a president is constitutionally bound to faithfully execute the laws of the land and not violate them. It is A completely ludicrous argument! Even this SCOTUS is going not go for that!
Thanks Marjorie. Donald Trump was born on the day of a Lunar Eclipse, closely aligned with Uranus in Gemini. Does this make him more sensitive to eclipse energies I wonder? Is he a Uranian influence in some way, channeling chaos for a purpose nobody can see clearly?
I notice that the Republican Convention this summer is 15th – 18th July. Hovering over it, in the cosmos, is the potentially potent line-up of Mars, Uranus, and Algol in Taurus at 26 degrees. Some surprises, and some intensity could be expected there, and elsewhere in our world.
Donald Trump’s natal Mars is 26 Leo, so right in the path of Mars, Uranus, and Algol. Combative?!
The Supreme Court has Mars 25 Leo and Jupiter 27 Leo, fiery energy squared in July by earthy energy. Does the fire scorch the earth, or the earth put out the fire? Supreme Court/D Trump has Venus 26 Taurus, close to Saturn, 22 Taurus. Financial upsets and surprises are one possibile manifestation I suspect.
The 14th Amendment, July 9th 1868, preceded a Solar Eclipse that August at 25 Leo. Saturn was 29 Scorpio.
The Great American Eclipse of August 2017 was 28 Leo, trine Uranus in Aries in Trump’s first summer as President. It was the year of his Jupiter Return too. So this links the Supreme Court, Donald Trump, and the 14th Amendment in some ways, through those late Fixed degrees.
The Supreme Court and Trump’s composite has Sun 18 Aries, opposing Trump’s natal Jupiter in, er, legal Libra with its Scales of Justice and balance. April’s Solar Eclipse is 19 Aries, conjunct Chiron. It’s another very visible eclipse for the USA too. Well, signs and portents….and more chaos to come I suspect.
The “Immunity” case is so foolish it’s clear what the final ruling will be; this is a clear cut delay tactic which Trump is adept at. He’ll likely win the ballot case.
But off topic. Breaking news is Biden’s Secretary of Defense was hospitalized sometime ago and not even he(POTUS) was notified! This is egregious and a replacement should be selected in a timely manner then Austin fired. Damn shame.
I nominate William H. McRaven for the post. Seems a solid fella.
@Troy, Adm. McRaven is a great guy, but he has leukemia, which makes him less likely to take a high-stress position like SecDef.
@Nicole: Thanks for the info. Unfortunate.
Extremely so. McRaven is exceptionally thoughtful.
I became a US citizen 10 years ago. I had to learn the answers to 100 questions about the US. The first question was “What is the Rule of Law”, Answer is “All persons, institutions, and entities are accountable to laws. Nobody is above the law”
Trump is not immune from Jan 6th. If the Supreme Court says he is, then we know this is the final end of the USA and the country will become a tin-pot dictatorship.
A big problem here is Civics education (where they teach this in school) is not prioritized anymore. I don’t even know if kids who are home schooled get this – and there are a lot of children who are home schooled now. There is a lot of ignorance in certain segments of the population – not all. Thanks for your post. My family has been here forever, but within the family there was always the expectation to serve the country and to do what we can to be fair and to help others.
“Back in the day…” in my 1950’s grade schools, we were never taught much beyond the three Rs – readin’, ‘ritin’, and ‘rithmetic. Asking questions beyond the basic subjects was met with stern responses and punishment. Paddling and/or sit in the corner. Being sent home with a note pinned to my shirt – and to be signed by my parents. Pretty brutal!
Civics education was not approached until the early 1970’s, when – certainly – civic issues were paramount. The home schoolers I encountered did tend to overdo it with religion.
My first cousin is a Baptist minister and his three children were home schooled. They turned out well, but have all moved far away from their parents – two completely across the country. They come home to visit. I grew up going to DOD schools, which were very good. It has always bothered me that you can become elected as president and never to have bothered to have read the constitution or the bill of rights. It has happened.
The 14th Amendment states that no person who has taken part in an insurrection can hold office. The Supreme Court may find a way out by saying that it does not address the issue of being a candidate. The Court may allow Trump to run but leave open the possibility it will intervene between November and January if he is elected, making his Vice president-elect the President upon the condition that person has not taken a part in the insurrection as well. The Court in a separate case will likely declare Trump has no immunity for January 6. The result would be to create such a high level of uncertainty going into the Republican Convention in July that it could nominate someone else.
Thanks Marjorie. Laurence Tribe has been arguing for a while that Trump needs to be off the ballot. He is a legal expert, constitutional, taught at Harvard for years. Judge Luttig arguing the same
https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/4393472-former-federal-judge-trump-14th-amendment-supreme-court-colorado/
We’ll see how this plays out. For me it has been worry, worry, worry, thinking about what blue state I will move to – I am currently in a purple enclave in one of the reddest states. I lived in Blue States for 25 years until I came here due to illness.
Clarence Thomas corruption has been astounding to me, and nothing is being done about it.
I am going to study your article deeply and your timing, and keep and eye on things. Even Rome lasted 500 years, and then 500 more. We aren’t even at 250 yet as a country.
Sir John Glubb in his essay The Fate of Empires and Search for Survival, posited the idea that the average lifespan of an empire is 250 years. In the essay, Sir John argued it was the “average length of national greatness” and that the average had not varied for 3000 years. The US turns 250 in 2026. The added twist being that the US has never met the criteria for being an empire being “where a dominant central state controls weaker peripheral (outer) states.”
Thanks Anna. I will look this up.
Thanks Marjorie. The consensus among even liberal experts is that the ballot question will be a tough act for Colorado to argue in front of the Supreme Court. Given your analysis of Trump’s “good luck running alongside less favourable influences”,my thought is that he will win the ballot question and loses the immunity case. Also remembering your post on “US heading for a fraught election” Tr Uranus cross his Midheaven late May 2024 on and off to April 2025 hints at a change of career or life’s direction. We will have to wait and see. Unsettling times for sure!
@Anita
Republicans are so myopic when it comes to the immunity question because if after Biden loses the election in November he could unleash unholy hell if the Supreme Court rules that Trump is immune from prosecution for actions that he took as president.
They are so desperate to get Trump off on any legal technicality that they are ignoring the obvious but I guess they know that Biden isn’t any where as corrupt as they have been implying.