Presidential Republican nominees showed their support for former President Donald Trump after the Colorado Supreme Court ruled that Trump could not be on the Colorado ballot because of his involvement with the Jan. 6 insurrection.
“The Left invokes ‘democracy’ to justify its use of power, even if it means abusing judicial power to remove a candidate from the ballot based on spurious legal grounds. SCOTUS should reverse,” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), who is running for president in 2024, wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Others joined DeSantis, including former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who despite saying Trump is “praising dictators,” said that judges shouldn’t decide whether Trump is on the Colorado ballot.
“We don’t need to have judges making these decisions, we need voters to make these decisions,” she said in Iowa, according to the Des Moines Register.
In its decision, the Colorado Supreme Court wrote that they had “little difficulty” reaching the decision.
“We do not reach these conclusions lightly,” the decision read. “We are mindful of the magnitude and weight of the questions now before us. We are likewise mindful of our solemn duty to apply the law, without fear or favor, and without being swayed by public reaction to the decisions that the law mandates we reach.”
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said during a town hall in New Hampshire that the ruling was “premature” and that the decision should not have been made until a trial for the 2020 election interference case.
“I don’t think a court should exclude somebody from running for president without there being a trial and evidence that’s accepted by a jury that they did participate in insurrection,” Christie said.
Trump is expected to face trial in March for allegedly interfering with the 2020 election.
Ronna McDaniel, chair of the Republican National Committee, wrote on X that Democrats are “terrified of democracy” and that the RNC will “continue fighting this case up to the Supreme Court.”
“Election interference,” McDaniel wrote in another post on X. “This irresponsible ruling will be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court and our legal team looks forward to helping fight for a victory. The Republican nominee will be decided by Republican voters, not a partisan state court.”
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), who ran for president against Trump in 2016, wrote on X that the ruling was “garbage.”
“This ruling is garbage,” he wrote. “This WILL be appealed to the Supreme Court & the Supreme Court WILL reverse it. To every Dem & media outlet saying ‘save Democracy,’ this is a test: Will you denounce these partisan judges trying to PREVENT THE VOTERS from choosing the next President?”
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) wrote on X that the Colorado judges “stole the election” from Colorado citizens.
“This is an unprecedented First amendment violation that must be struck down by the SCOTUS,” Greene wrote. “This can not be allowed to stand.”
