Attorneys for former President Donald Trump moved to dismiss a suit against Trump that attempts to bar him from appearing on ballots in Colorado, claiming the former president's speech on Jan. 6, 2021, was protected under the First Amendment.
The legal team argued in a state court filing that was posted Monday that Trump did not violate the Fourteenth Amendment because he did not participate in the riot itself. The Fourteenth Amendment is a Civil War-era amendment that bans any person who swore to protect the Constitution, and then acted in an insurrection or rebellion against it, from holding public office.
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“At no time do Petitioners argue that President Trump did anything other than engage in either speaking or refusing to speak for their argument that he engaged in the purported insurrection,” attorney Geoffrey Blue wrote in the filing, obtained by NBC News. "The Fourteenth Amendment applies to one who ‘engaged in insurrection or rebellion,’ not one who only ‘instigated’ any action."
The attorneys also argued that the case should be dismissed because Trump is not an official candidate under Colorado election law yet.
The case in Colorado is the first among several states that will be heard in court that seek to keep Trump from the 2024 ballot through the Fourteenth Amendment. Other states with similar efforts include California, Florida, Georgia, and Minnesota. Trump is also facing criminal cases related to his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election, and his role in the Jan. 6 riot.
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The move to dismiss the case was filed under Colorado's anti-SLAPP law, which protects individuals from lawsuits that harass them for behavior that is protected by the First Amendment. The dismissal motion was filed on Friday, but the court did not post the move until Monday.
A court date to hear the motion has been set for Oct. 13, 2023, and the court will hear the constitutional arguments on Oct. 30, 2023.