Donald Trump, the former U.S. president, recently won a significant legal case that had been challenging his 2024 presidential run. This decision came from Judge Robin Rosenberg, a nominee from President Barack Obama’s term in 2014. The lawsuit, filed by Lawrence Caplan, a tax attorney from Boynton Beach, along with two others, aimed to prevent Trump’s name from being on the Florida presidential primary ballot in the upcoming year. Their reasoning was Trump’s purported involvement in the events of January 6, 2021, at the Capitol. However, Judge Rosenberg stated that the plaintiffs did not have the standing required under the Constitution’s 14th Amendment to make such a challenge.
Interestingly, Trump has criticized several of Obama’s judicial appointees over the years, often when they ruled against him. For instance, Trump has been vocal in his criticism of U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, who is overseeing a case related to Trump’s alleged interference in the federal election. He expressed his dissatisfaction on Truth Social after she scheduled the trial.
In the lawsuit, Caplan referenced the 14th Amendment’s disqualification clause, which mentions that individuals who have participated in insurrection or rebellion against the government can’t hold office. Using the Capitol incident as evidence, Caplan asserted that Trump clearly met the criteria outlined in the 14th Amendment’s Section Three.
Nevertheless, Judge Rosenberg highlighted that the case did not possess the required standing. She also mentioned that the claims of injury in the lawsuit weren’t specific to the plaintiffs and weren’t valid legal claims. Caplan, in a conversation with Newsweek, revealed he doesn’t plan to appeal but might consider taking the case to the D.C. District Court, expecting a different outcome on the standing issue.
On a related note, officials from New Hampshire and Michigan are examining if Trump’s campaign might conflict with the 14th Amendment. A recent article in The Atlantic by both conservative former 4th Circuit Appeals Court Judge J. Michael Luttig and liberal legal expert Laurence Tribe, posited that Trump’s behavior post the 2020 election results may come under the 14th Amendment’s disqualification clause. This article was Caplan’s inspiration for filing his lawsuit against Trump’s campaign, as he mentioned in an interview with The Hill.
Summarizing his stance, Caplan remarked, “The law is the law,” hinting at the anticipation of how the judiciary will interpret it.
