House Democrats introduce legislation to bar Trump from office

(Gray News) - On Thursday, a group of 40 House Democrats led by Rep. David Cicilline introduced legislation that would bar former President Donald Trump from holding any federal office in the future, citing Section 3 of the 14th Amendment.

Section 3 of the amendment says that no one who previously took an oath to support the Constitution and engaged in “insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies” shall “hold any office, civil or military, under the United States.”

Cicilline said that Trump “very clearly engaged in an insurrection on January 6, 2021.”

The legislation goes into detail about how Trump helped encourage the events of Jan. 6 while knowing the election results were lawful, attempted to intimidate state and federal officials when they did not support his claims of mass voter fraud, attempted to manipulate former Vice President Mike Pence and supported the violence at the Capitol.

“Even Mitch McConnell admits that Trump bears responsibility, saying on the Senate floor that ‘[t]here’s no question, none, that President Trump is practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of the day,’” Cicilline said in a statement.

On Monday, the House Jan. 6 committee, which disbands at the end of the year, referred Trump to the Justice Department for possible prosecution for four separate criminal offenses. The referral doesn’t obligate the Justice Department to act, the Associated Press said, though the DOJ has their own special counsel investigating Trump.

Last month, Trump said he’s running for president in 2024.