Judging Freedom - Lawsuit against Marjorie Taylor Greene is Rubbish

Episode Date: April 19, 2022

Attempt to bar Marjorie Taylor Greene from Congress can proceed, judge says Federal judge cites ‘whirlpool of colliding constitutional interests’ in allowing 14th-amendment challenge to far-right Republican #MarjorieTaylorGreeneSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hello there everyone, Judge Andrew Napolitano here for Judging Freedom. Today is Wednesday, April 19. It's about 2.30, 2.15 in the afternoon on the east coast of the United States. And yesterday afternoon, a federal judge in Georgia denied an application by Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene to prevent a lawsuit from going forward to bar her from seeking re-election. Well, how can you sue a member of Congress to bar that member of Congress from seeking re-election? Answer the 14th Amendment. When the Congress in 1868, which was controlled by the radical Republicans, decided to let southern states back into the Union, they did so only if the states ratified the 14th Amendment. And the 14th Amendment says, among many other provisions, no one can hold a civil office. You can hold an office in the military, but no one can hold a civil office in the government of the United States who has participated in an insurrection or rebellion.

This was to prevent people who had fought for or were in the government of the Confederacy from coming back to Congress and would force the southern states to elect entirely new public officials, members of Congress, members of the House of Representatives, and United States senators. Fast forward to today and liberal groups in Georgia have filed a lawsuit seeking to prevent the Secretary of State from putting Congresswoman Greene's name on the ballot as she seeks renomination in the Republican Party, a given if her name is on the ballot, and re-election to the House of Representatives from her district, a given if her name is on the ballot, because they claim by her vocal support for whatever went on on January 6th, she participated in an insurrection or rebellion.

Now, I think the lawsuit is bunk. I think it's frivolous, and I would throw it out. The 14th Amendment was written for one war and one war only, and it was the war between the states. No one is alive today seeking public office or a live period who fought for the Confederacy in the war between the states. And you could even argue whether it was a rebellion or an insurrection. The southern states left. Lincoln sent armies down there to bring them back. They weren't trying to take over Washington. It wasn't a civil war. It wasn't fight for control of Washington. It wasn't an insurrection. They left.

The war was started when Nixon, God forgive me, when Lincoln used arms to kill their soldiers to force them to come back to the bargaining table, which of course happened after Lincoln himself was dead. So I think the litigation is frivolous and the federal judge should throw it out. People are entitled to whoever they want to represent them in Congress. I don't agree with everything Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene does and says. I agree with some of it, but that has nothing to do with my opinion here. My opinion here is based upon my 50 years of study, analysis, reading, writing, and lecturing about the Constitution. If this lawsuit goes forward, there will be a trial, and the trial will have a jury determine whether or not whatever happened on January 6th was an insurrection or a rebellion.

That's not for a jury to determine. That's for the voters to determine. Congresswoman Greene should rise or fall on her record in Congress and whether or not the voters trust her and not on some arcane provision of the Constitution, which was never intended for this purpose. Judge Napolitano for judging freedom.