How Portland’s Mayor Can End Trump’s Bid for Re-Election Immediately

The Mayor of Portland is currently in the position to put an end to the Trump Administration’s bid for the White House.

Trump’s use of Federal force against peaceful protesters in Portland and his plans to use similar force in places like Philadelphia and Chicago has garnered global attention not only for its brazenly aggressive advancement of authoritarian rule and martial law in the United States, but also for the Administration’s violation of Constitutional law.

To this point, the focus of Trump’s decimation of the Constitution has largely focused on the First Amendment rights of the protesters. As the BBC reports:

“In the lawsuit, Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum requested a restraining order to stop agents from the Department of Homeland Security, US Marshals Service, US Customs and Border Protection and the Federal Protection Service from making any more arrests in the city.

‘These tactics must stop,’ Ms. Rosenblum said in a statement. ‘They not only make it impossible for people to assert their First Amendment rights to protest peacefully, they also create a more volatile situation on our streets.’”

The lawsuit filed by AG Rosenblum also “accuses federal officers of violating the Fourth and Fifth Amendments by seizing and detaining people without a warrant, and denying them due process.”

These violations are significant, and the Trump Administration should face a courtroom for these crimes against the American people, but the lawsuit does not go far enough.

The Trump Administration and the Republican Party have not only been completely deconstructing democracy and tearing apart the Constitutional rights of Americans in the United States — they have been committing an insurrection and rebellion against the nation, as well.

That is also a violation of Constitutional law, specifically the 14th Amendment of the United States. Section Three of this Amendment reads:

“No person shall…hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof.”

Legally, rebellion and insurrection “refer specifically to acts of violence against the state or its officers. This distinguishes the crime from sedition, which is the organized incitement to rebellion or civil disorder against the authority of the state. It also separates the crime from treason, which is the violation of allegiance owed to one’s country by betrayal or acting to aid the country’s enemies.”

Trump’s use of federal force in Portland, and the exactment of this force by tear gassing Portland’s Mayor Ted Wheeler is a clear act of insurrection and a violation of the 14th Amendment Section Three. This clause, which was written to prevent Confederates from assuming public office after the Civil War, stands on the books to prevent similar criminals and traitors from being able to hold office today.

Not only is it illegal for any public official to commit insurrection or rebellion against the United States, but it is grounds for disqualification from re-election.

Ted Wheeler is literally holding Donald Trump’s ability to run for office in November in his hands.

Donald Trump and the Trump Administration have left this nation to languish under a lethal pandemic. They have collaborated with foreign nations to disrupt our elections. They are allowing Russian adversaries to put bounties on the heads of American troops. And now they are quite literally committing insurrection and rebellion against Americans and our public officials. This has gone on for far too long.

Trump may think he is above the law, but this is one provision that even he can’t escape. Mayor Wheeler is now standing in the position to stop the Trump Administration and its open assault on America and her people. All he needs to do is file a lawsuit against Trump for violating Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. We should collectively, as a nation, encourage him to do so. Before it’s too late.