Over the last eight years of American politics, unprecedented events have occurred in the judiciary and political realms of the federal government (and at the state level) that have thrown into question the integrity and free nature of America’s governing institutions. Following the 2016 election of Donald Trump in which he won an upset victory over the Democratic challenger Hillary Clinton, the general climate of politics in the country has become polarized, divided, tense and completely backwards. While many on the left wing of the political spectrum have blamed Trump for much of the divide in the country and the political chaos, many experts have claimed political tensions have been on the rise for years prior to the business and real estate mogul from New York’s decision to run for office.
Trump has been one of the first people in many years to truly challenge the integrity of the federal government and if nothing else has completely exposed the weaknesses and questionable state of the modern government. Trump is facing four criminal indictments and has faced two failed impeachment proceedings. Recently, the Colorado state supreme court made a ruling that cited a portion of the 14th amendment of the United States Constitution and claimed that Trump should be ineligible for the presidential primary ballot in that state because he incited “an insurrection” on January 6th, 2021. Trump has engaged in no political violence, hasn’t been convicted of anything and hasn’t been given the full extent of his fifth amendment rights.
The attempt to remove him from the ballot (or to remove any candidate from the ballot) is an unprecedented step in American history. Things like this happened in Soviet Russia and Nazi Germany, where politicians in power would weaponize the courts against potential opponents to their power. Recently, Trump’s former vice president Mike Pence stated it was “antithetical to American democracy” to remove Trump from the state’s presidential primary ballot.
