Even if Merrick Garland is foolish enough to indict Trump, he can still run and win

American Thinker ^ | 12/21/2022 | Andrea Widburg

[SeekAndFind]

The unlawfully constituted and conducted January 6 Committee referred Donald Trump for a criminal indictment to keep him from running again in 2024. The problem for the Democrats, unfamiliar as they are with the Constitution and with American history, is that there is no reason for Trump not to run and win, even if he’s deep in the bowels of Leavenworth or some other federal penitentiary.

The United States Constitution is succinct when it comes to the requirements for president. Article II, Section 1 provides:

No Person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of President; neither shall any Person be eligible to that Office who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty five Years, and been fourteen Years a Resident within the United States.

That’s it: Natural-born citizen, at least 35 years old, and living in the U.S. for 14 years. There is no requirement saying that someone charged with, or having been convicted of, or even being imprisoned for any type of crime is ineligible to serve. Democrats would add to the requirement Amend. 14, Sec. 3, barring those engaged in insurrection or rebellion, but they’re wrong. (See below.)

What Democrats forget is that the U.S. has already had a felon convicted of sedition run for president while in prison without anyone complaining that doing so disqualified him. That man was Eugene V. Debs, an ardent socialist from Indiana, who was one of the founding members of the Industrial Workers of the World (aka the “Wobblies”).

[SeekAndFind]

Eugene Debs runs for president from prison by Clifford Berryman. Public Domain.

Unlike today’s American leftists, whose socialism is grounded in race and sexual orientation, the Wobblies were pure Marxists who dreamed that the workers of the world would unite in a glorious global socialist paradise. (The WEF has a similar dream: the elite of the world will unite in a glorious paradise, one in which the sad remnants of the WEF’s planned human die-off will work for these new demigods, have nothing, and like it…or else.)

In 1897, Debs founded the Social Democracy of America, which quickly failed. It, in turn, gave birth to the Social Democratic Party of the United States (“SDP”), and Debs became a board member. In 1900, Debs ran for president as the candidate for the Social Democratic Party of the United States. When that group disbanded, he joined the Socialist Party of America (“SPA”). Under the SPA’s banner, he ran for president in 1904, 1908, 1912, and 1920 as the SPA’s representative. It’s the 1920 election that is the one that interests us.

Debs opposed America’s involvement in WWI. Wilson, the father of today’s expert- and race-obsessed Progressives, identified him as a traitor and, in 1918, when Debs made a speech urging men to resist the draft, he was arrested and charged with sedition—which falls under the same umbrella as insurrection. Debs was found guilty and sentenced to ten years in prison. He was also disenfranchised from voting. What the court could not do, though, was prevent Debs from running for president.

Despite his conviction and imprisonment, Debs ran for president in 1920 and received almost 1 million votes (or 3.4% of the total votes cast). Neither his criminal record nor his address (the Atlanta Federal Penitentiary) was a barrier to his candidacy.

In 1923, Warren G. Harding commuted Deb’s sentence to time served. Deb’s lived another three years, dying at 70 from heart failure.

[Angelino97]

Despite his conviction and imprisonment, Debs ran for president in 1920 and received almost 1 million votes (or 3.4% of the total votes cast). Neither his criminal record nor his address (the Atlanta Federal Penitentiary) was a barrier to his candidacy.

But if Debs had won, would he have been permitted to serve?

[VTenigma]

Keep telling yourself that Andrea. The mainstream gatekeepers will have a field day if Trump is indicted. The squish middle will not vote for him.

[Angelino97]

At least one presidential candidate was on the ballot who was under 35 years old. Had he or she won, he would not have been able to serve.

I think it was in 1972. I remember reading about it in the Weekly Reader, a children's publication that was distributed in schools. It was an article about third party candidates in the upcoming 1972 election. This underage candidate ran on one of the socialist parties.

It's a lot easier to legally appear on the ballot than to Constitutionally serve.

[Lonesome in Massachussets]

He could be sworn in in prison, and then immediately sign his own pardon.

[Susquehanna Patriot]

Why not?

As long as he was a socialist, communist or demonkkrap (no difference really), he could be sworn into the office while in his prison cell, then pardon himself. Assuming the courts would have jurisdiction, who would have “standing” to challenge this? I read somewhere in the not too distance past that no one in the entire country has standing to challenge a demonkkrap candidate on his status as a natural born citizen.

[central_va]

BS. If they indict Trump his win will be even bigger. Even indys don’t like 3rd world BS.

[central_va]

You DeoSanctus-philes would not benefit from this. Be careful. It will look orchestratrated ( maybe it is...)

[coalminersson]

Iirc Eldridge cleever was removed from call ballot for being too young. Despite the stories of Obama no Secretary of State asked for his birth certificate as they had cleever

[V_TWIN]

Indicting Trump was the whole reason for that j6 shit/clown show kangaroo court.

You think they’re gonna stop short of their endgame now?

Ridiculous house of cards though that it is.

The thing that pisses me off the most is none of these COWARDS could ever stand up to the scrutiny DJT has endured for 6 years.

[WildHighlander57]

From one of the comments:

“
The Amnesty Act of 1872 removed the prohibition, which was the reason Debs could run without violating a provision that no longer had any effect.

“Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled (two-thirds of each house concurring therein), that all political disabilities imposed by the third section of the fourteenth article of amendments of the Constitution of the United States are hereby removed from all persons whomsoever, except Senators and Representatives of the thirty-sixth and thirty-seventh Congresses, officers in the judicial, military, and naval service of the United States, heads of departments, and foreign ministers of the United States.”
“

[Skywise]

And then pardon himself! Hahahahahahahaha

[FlingWingFlyer]

Little Merry the RAT needs a good swift kick in the ass. Partisan biatch.

[xyz2]

No way will he be indicted.
The election was stolen.

[VTenigma]

I’m full on Trump, but I’m also a realist. Delude yourself at your own peril.

[VTenigma]

I’m full on Trump, but I’m also a realist. Delude yourself at your own peril.

[WeaslesRippedMyFlesh]

An indictment will lock in Trump’s re-election.

Go for it Mary Garterbelt.

[Vermont Lt]

An underage person may run as long as they are of age at the time they take office. So…someone born between November and Jan 20th can run when they are 34.

No suggesting that’s going to happen…or should happen.

[whitney69]

“Whoever willfully and unlawfully conceals, removes, mutilates, obliterates, or destroys, or attempts to do so, or, with intent to do so takes and carries away any record, proceeding, map, book, paper, document, or other thing, filed or deposited with any clerk or officer of any court of the United States, or in any public office, or with any judicial or public officer of the United States, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than three years, or both.”

This statute only applies to people that cannot observe certain levels of sensitive information. As president, Trump was authorized to view the documents and, and usual, was provided a scif to store and observe any level of documentation he determined a need for. So as he was charged with illegally maintaining documents he had been cleared and provided a location to observe by the charging group, and that the documents were never recognized as to when the president retrieved them, then there is no case. More taxpayer money down the tubes.

wy69

[Taxman]

Ping