Former Obama advisor David Axelrod warned that removing former President Donald Trump’s name from the GOP primary ballot would lead to increased division in the country.
“I have very, very strong reservations about all of this,” Axelrod said on CNN on Friday. “I do think it would rip the country apart if he were actually prevented from running because tens of millions of people want to vote for him.”
If you feel strongly about preserving our democracy, you shouldn't embrace the move to bar Trump from the ballot based on ambiguous interpretations of the 14th Amendment. It would tear the country apart and, for many, further erode faith in our system. https://t.co/syZz3KZZVG
— David Axelrod (@davidaxelrod) December 29, 2023
The legal challenges continue to mount against Trump as his opponents are citing Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, the insurrection clause, to remove his name from GOP primary ballots based on his actions during the events of January 6.
Colorado was the first state to remove Trump’s name from the GOP primary ballot as its Supreme Court voted 4-3 against the former president. Maine soon followed suit when Secretary of State Shenna Bellows (D) unilaterally decided to do the same.
Axelrod’s advice to Democrats in regards to a Trump candidacy: “I think if you’re going to beat Donald Trump, you’re going to probably have to do it at the polls.”
Axelrod also stated that the effort being made by Democrats to remove Trump’s name from the ballots is backfiring and that it could ultimately strengthen him in the primary.
“We’ve run this experiment, he’s only gained since he started getting indicted,” Axelrod said. “What you thought might be kryptonite for him has turned out to be battery packs, and this is a big one for him.”
Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung also commented on what he labeled “election interference” as the campaign continues to try to turn the kryptonite into battery packs.
“We are witnessing, in real-time, the attempted theft of an election and the disenfranchisement of the American voter,” Cheung said. “Make no mistake, these partisan election interference efforts are a hostile assault on American democracy.”
It is widely expected that the U.S. Supreme Court will make a final ruling on Trump’s eligibility in the near future. Axelrod believes that the Supreme Court will take up the case quickly and that Trump will be placed back on the ballots from which he was removed.
