Chris Christie and Joe Biden could sue in enough states, trying to pull him off the ballot, that a) it'd be all over the news and b) it might work in a couple of states, enough to help
TLDR version is that Amendment 14 Section 3 says if you were involved in an attempt to overthrow the government you no longer are allowed to hold public office.
Section 3 Disqualification from Holding Office
No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.
I think the trick is going to be, based on the other guy who got disqualified for 1/6, is that someone actually has to challenge the nomination. It's not something that happens automatically.
"The decision came in a lawsuit brought by a group of New Mexico residents represented by the government accountability group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) and other lawyers."
Yes, any state could do this. No state will decide who goes on their ballots until after the primaries though. They can "declare" things all they want, but nothing is actionable until the ballots are finalized (and then the suing starts).
Yes, and if he becomes the nominee, that will have to be done. But in the end it won't matter unless enough states successfully do it to deprive him of 270 electoral college votes.
Notably the constitution doesn't actually require a trial of any sort. The amendment was put in after the civil war, it would have been impossible to have a trial for everyone that participated in the Confederacy. Bit of an open question how that gets determined nowadays though.
Yup, the constitution just says if you do it. Doesn't say you have to be convicted of doing it in court, or anything like that. Just being involved you are automatically disqualified and Congress has to vote to override that.
The clause was designed to operate directly and immediately upon those who betray their oaths to the Constitution, whether by taking up arms to overturn our government or by waging war on our government by attempting to overturn a presidential election through a bloodless coup.
american here, I never took an oath to the constitution. i know a few folks who served in the military so presumably they did but I sure as hell didnt.
I’m not sure what you’re intending to ask with this question.
Is it theoretically possible for an American citizen to take on a role that would characterize them as a legally defined enemy of the US?
Yes.
Has it happened that American citizens took on roles that made them enemies of the United States?
Yes.
Are all American citizens enemies of the United States by grace of being American citizens?
No.
Does a citizen making a violent attack against the United States with a terroristic intent or with the intent of overthrowing the democratically elected government mean that the citizen violated 14.3?
No.
Is a person who has taken an oath to uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States, and having engaged in an attempt to overthrow the government by means of force, or who has aided enemies of the United States including those engaging in such acts or attempts, fall under Section 3 and is thus barred from holding public office without a Congressional removal?
Yes.
That is not what makes their actions the actions of an enemy. They’re enemies whether or not they’re also oath-breakers. They will have to face the consequences of their actions as combatants, terrorists, or however their actions are classified. s3 is an additional bar from them again holding office, since they’ve already demonstrated their propensity to destroy that which is entrusted to them.