Can Marjorie Taylor Greene be barred from running for office again? Yes — if it can be proven that she's an insurrectionist.
Earlier today, Ron Fein, legal director of the nonprofit Free Speech For People, filed a lawsuit against Marjorie Taylor Greene arguing that her past statements and behavior make her an insurrectionist, according to Forbes. And insurrectionists are prohibited from holding public office, according to a disqualification clause in the Fourteenth Amendment.
The lawsuit, pointing to this disqualification clause "contends that Greene 'is constitutionally disqualified from congressional office and, as such, ineligible to run as a candidate under state and federal law,'" according to The New Yorker.
If being an insurrectionist includes inspiring and encouraging MAGA fans to fight in the days and months leading up to the Capitol insurrection, and then taking credit for the Jan 6 Capitol attack one day later, then yeah, it sounds like Greene fits the description.
A few examples of her traitorous call to arms:
"The only way you get your freedoms back is it's earned with the price of blood," she said before the 2020 presidential election:
"Let's get ready to fight for America tomorrow," Greene said on Jan. 5, 2021, the day before the Capitol riots:
"It was a hard thing we did yesterday, but I wouldn't do anything else. I wouldn't do anything else," Greene bragged on Jan 7, 2021:
From Forbes:
The filing alleges Greene's actions leading up to the January 6, 2021, riot satisfies the 14th Amendment's definition of "engag[ing]" in an insurrection, including how she promoted the pre-attack rally—calling it "our 1776 moment"—and reportedly met with people who planned the protest that preceded the outbreak of violence. …
The legal challenge will be heard before an administrative law judge, with the burden on Greene to prove she's eligible for office. The administrative judge will issue a decision, which [Secretary of State of Georgia] Raffensperger will take into account before issuing his own ruling on whether Greene can be on the ballot. University of Iowa law professor Derek Muller told Reuters he believes only Congress would have the power to disqualify Greene, rather than the state. "Georgia has no jurisdiction to assess a congressional candidate's eligibility today," Muller said.
