Senate did not support Trump's impeachment, but they still want to deprive him of the right to engage in politics

Dozens of former Republican officials who believe the party is unwilling to confront former President Donald Trump and his attempts to undermine U.S. democracy are in talks to create a center-right breakaway party. Reuters.

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Trump Hate Party

Early-stage discussions include former elected Republicans, former Republican administration officials Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush, George W. Bush and Trump, former Republican ambassadors, and Republican strategists.

Last Friday, Feb. 12, more than 120 of them held a Zoom call to discuss a splinter group that would run on a platform of “principled conservatism,” including a commitment to the Constitution and the rule of law — ideas that participants say have been dismantled by Trump.

The plan will be to field candidates in some races, but also support center-right candidates in others, whether Republicans, Independent MPs or Democrats, according to attendees.

Evan McMullin, who was the chief political director of the House Republican Conference and ran as an Independent Representative in the 2016 presidential election, told Reuters that he was one of the organizers of a teleconference with former officials worried about Trump's hold on Republicans and a nativist turn in the party.

Three other people confirmed the call to Reuters and discussed the creation of a potential splinter party, but asked not to be identified.

Participants in the call included John Mitnick, General Counsel for Trump's Department of Homeland Security; former Republican Congressman Charlie Dent; Elisabeth Neumann, deputy chief of staff for Trump's Department of Homeland Security; and Miles Taylor, another former Trump security official.

The talks highlight wide partisan divisions over Trump's false claims of electoral fraud and the deadly storming of the Capitol on January 6. Most Republicans remain fiercely loyal to the 45 president, but others are looking for a new direction for the party.

On January 13, the House of Representatives impeached Trump on charges of inciting rebellion by calling on thousands of supporters to go to the Capitol on the day Congress was about to certify Democrat Joe Biden's election victory.

Those on the call said they were particularly alarmed by the fact that more than half of congressional Republicans - eight senators and 8 House representatives - voted to block certification of Biden's election victory just hours after the siege at the Capitol.

Most Republican senators also indicated that they would not support Trump's conviction in the Senate impeachment trial.

“A large part of the Republican Party is radicalizing and threatening American democracy,” McMullin told Reuters. “The party must reaffirm its commitment to truth, reason and fundamental ideals, otherwise something new is clearly needed.”

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"These Losers"

Asked about the third-party discussions, Trump's spokesman Jason Miller said, "These losers left the GOP when they voted for Joe Biden."

The Republican National Committee spokesperson referred to a recent statement from Chair Ronna McDaniel.

“If we continue to attack each other and focus on attacking other Republicans, if we have divisions within our party, then we will lose sight of the 2022 (election),” McDaniel said on Fox News. “The only way to win is to unite.”

McMullin said just over 40% of Zoom conference participants supported the idea of ​​creating a third party. Another option being discussed is to form a "faction" that would operate either within or outside the current Republican Party.

Names being considered for the new party include the Honesty Party and the Center Right Party. If it is decided to form a faction instead, one name will be discussed - Center Right Republicans.

Council members are aware that the US political landscape is littered with remnants of previous failed attempts to engage national third parties.

“But there is a much greater need for a new political party than I have ever experienced in my life,” said one participant.

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Can Trump be stripped of the right to run?

In the wake of the Capitol siege, some US lawmakers have called for 45 President Donald Trump and some of his congressional colleagues to be removed from office or barred from holding office again - and they may seek to invoke the 14th Amendment to that end.

The 14th Amendment was passed in 1868 and is known for granting citizenship rights and equal protection under the law to all who were born or naturalized in the United States, including blacks and formerly enslaved people. The amendment overturned the 1857 Supreme Court decision, Dred Scott v. Sandford, which stated that people of African descent could not be US citizens.

However, one section of the amendment prohibits a person who, having taken the oath to the Constitution, “participated in an uprising or rebellion” against the United States, from holding office. It was originally designed to prevent the Confederates from holding public office after the Civil War, but now may prevent Trump from running again.

“The idea was that officials of the United States would not be people who had betrayed the United States,” said Doron Kalir, a professor at Cleveland-Marshall College of Law.

Here is the full text of Section 3 of the 14th Amendment:

"No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or an elector of the President and Vice President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States or in any State, unless such person having previously been sworn as a member of the United States Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of a state legislature, or as an officer of the executive or judicial branch of any state, in support of the Constitution of the United States, engages in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or gives aid or comfort to his enemies. But Congress may, by a two-thirds vote of each House, remove such a prohibition.”

Legal scholars disagree as to whether the amendment can actually be used in the Trump case, and, if used, how it will act. While the amendment lists senators, representatives, and voters as positions that a person may be denied, the presidency is not explicitly named.

"I'm not sure that would apply to the president of the United States at all," Kalir said, adding that it's unlikely the authors would have named those positions but not the president himself if they intended it to apply to him. Most likely, he said, the section is intended for senators and lower positions.

There is also uncertainty as to exactly how the amendment will be applied to remove someone from office.

“It is unclear who should determine that an individual engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the United States,” Kalir said.

Some legal scholars believe that Congress will ban anyone from holding office simply by passing legislation with a simple majority in both houses. In this scenario, the process would be relatively straightforward, as Democrats have a majority in both the Senate and the House of Representatives. But Kalir said this logic contradicts another section of the Constitution that effectively prohibits Congress from acting as a court.

Therefore, some scholars do not think that Congress can only use the 14th Amendment to bar someone, such as Trump, from holding office. Instead, the process is likely to require litigation in addition to legislation.

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Federal prosecutors are investigating Trump's role in inciting the Capitol uprising, which could theoretically lead to his conviction in court. Such an accusation could give Congress the power to pass legislation barring Trump from holding office on the grounds that he, as the 14th Amendment states, "participated in an uprising or riot."

The amendment has been applied once in over a century to remove someone from office. In 1919, Congress banned Viktor Berger, a Wisconsin socialist and elected official, from joining the House of Representatives, as he actively opposed the US entry into World War I. An ad hoc committee was convened and concluded that Berger was not suitable for the position. He was banned by a simple majority in the Senate and House of Representatives. Because of this, some believe that the precedent in Congress shows that only a simple majority is needed.

Kalir disagrees.

“To think that the United States Congress can stop anyone from becoming president of the United States except by impeachment is a big step — it’s a big legal leap,” he said.

Berger's case happened 102 years ago and this section has not been used since. Kalir says that if he was referenced today, it could be challenged in court, and it would ultimately take years to play this card.

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