Trump not dumped

This decision isn't (or shouldn't be) terribly surprising. 

Former President Donald Trump will stay on the Minnesota primary ballot after the state supreme court on Wednesday dismissed a lawsuit seeking end his candidacy under a rarely-used constitutional provision that forbids those who ''engaged in insurrection'' from holding office.

The Minnesota Supreme Court declined to become the first in history to use Section 3 of the 14th Amendment to prevent someone from running for the presidency. The court dodged the central question of the lawsuit — does Trump's role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol disqualify him from the presidency — by ruling that state law allows parties to put whomever they want on the primary ballot.

"There is no state statute that prohibits a major political party from placing on the presidential nomination primary ballot, or sending delegates to the national convention supporting, a candidate who is ineligible to hold office,'' Chief Justice Natalie Hudson ruled.

The court left open the possibility that plaintiffs could try again to knock Trump off the general election ballot in November. The Minnesota challenge was filed by the liberal group Free Speech For People, which said it will continue its campaign to end Trump's presidential bid.

I say it often on this site (and it can never be emphasized enough) that I am no legal beagle. But even I know that absolutely every American (yes, even a despicable figure like Trump) has a presumption of innocence. Has Trump actually been found guilty of "inciting an insurrection?" Have charges even been filed against him since the J6 Committee hearings concluded? The SCOM didn't even address those issues, which makes me wonder if they'd consider leaving Trump off the general election ballot. I guess we'll find out. 

For the sake of the group bringing the lawsuit, they better have an airtight legal argument to leave Trump off the general election ballot. If they don't and thus that effort fails, this is sure to be a political loser for these people. That's not to say Trump will win Minnesota in 2024, but it could potentially galvanize support across the country. 

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