Quote by Prof. Laurence Tribe — 14th Amendment Section 3

In an article published in The Atlantic published on August 19th, retired federal judge J. Michael Luttig and distinguished legal scholar Laurence Tribe argue that the Constitution contains a provision that could render Donald Trump ineligible for future public office. This provision, Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment, is commonly referred to as the "disqualification clause."

Judge Luttig asserts that the disqualification clause bars the former president from seeking the presidency again due to his actions in and around the events of January 6, 2021. Importantly, as Tribe highlights, this clause is not intended as a punitive measure against any one individual. Rather, it reflects the careful intentions of the framers of the 14th Amendment, ensuring that no one can claim the office of the presidency without meeting the qualifications.

“The former president’s efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, and the resulting attack on the U.S. Capitol, place him squarely within the ambit of the disqualification clause, and he is therefore ineligible to serve as president ever again.”– Laurence H. Tribe, University Professor Emeritus - Harvard Law School

Fourteenth Amendment, Section 3:

No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or 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. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.

During Saturday’s episode of MSNBC's Velshi, Professor Tribe defined an insurrection as “an organized effort using all means available up to and including violence to prevent the government from performing its functions for the American people.”