Increasing numbers of Republicans are joining Democrats in Congress condemning last week’s Republican National Committee statement defending the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection as “legitimate political discourse.” Exasperation and frustration are growing on both sides of the aisle over the lack of accountability for lawmakers who cheered on the insurrection. At long last, real consequences could be on the horizon.
In North Carolina, the bipartisan state elections board said Monday it has the power to block Republican Rep. Madison Cawthorn from seeking reelection. He is challenging the board’s authority in court. A group of lawyers hopes to depose Cawthorn as part of that case about any role he might have played. If they’re successful under North Carolina law, he could be banned from federal elective office. The challenge could form the basis for blocking former President Donald Trump from a 2024 bid as well.
The crux of the lawyers’ argument is Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which bans anyone who engages in insurrection or has “given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof” from holding civil or elective federal office. Simply put, someone sworn to uphold the Constitution cannot comply with that oath while supporting sedition.
