President Donald Trump speaks during an event held in the East Room of The White House to commemorate a record of judicial confirmations by the Republican controlled Senate, on Nov. 6, 2019. Photo: Diego M. Radzinschi/ALM.
Despite the fact there has never been a former resident of the White House more deserving than Donald J. Trump to be disqualified from holding any office requiring an oath to “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States,” Senate Republicans may stifle the effort to disqualify him through impeachment. But there are alternative mechanisms worth exploring.
Most constitutional scholars agree that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment presents the best alternative. It prohibits federal officials who took an oath to support the Constitution, as Trump did when he was inaugurated, from holding future office if they engaged in “insurrection or rebellion” or gave “aid or comfort to the enemies” of the United States. Critically, Section 5 of the 14th Amendment provides that Congress may enforce Section 3 by “appropriate legislation.” Accordingly, disqualifying Trump under the 14th Amendment would only require a simple majority of the House and Senate, and not the two-thirds of the Senate necessary for conviction in an impeachment trial.
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