Gingrich says Colorado ruling on Trump risks ‘truly disastrous’ confrontation

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) said he thinks Democrats are “dangerously close” to bringing about a “truly disastrous” confrontation after the Colorado Supreme Court kicked former President Trump off the ballot for the upcoming Republican primary in the state.

Gingrich said the state court’s ruling, which is likely to head to the Supreme Court, was “potentially a catastrophe” if the nation’s highest court does not overrule the decision.

In an interview with Fox News’s Laura Ingraham on Wednesday, the former Speaker said more than a million Coloradans voted for Trump in the last election and “four lawyers want to block him from being on the ballot.” He said efforts to stop Trump from appearing on the ballot are “a system of establishment arrogance” and “not sustainable.”

“The American people are not going to tolerate being told that they’re not allowed to have a choice for who they want to have as president,” he said. “This is not Venezuela. It’s not Nicaragua. It’s not Cuba.”

“And I think the Democrats are dangerously close to causing the kind of confrontation that would be truly disastrous for the country,” he added.

Gingrich joins a number of other prominent Republicans who have spoken out against the ruling. Former Trump aide Kellyanne Conway appeared on Fox News on Wednesday, where she warned that the Supreme Court justices reviewing the case are “going to be under attack again.” She asked for prayers and said she is “truly worried for their safety” because Biden supporters will find their way to the justices’ homes, their children’s schools and places of worship.

The Colorado Supreme Court affirmed that Trump engaged in insurrection by enraging his supporters with false claims of election fraud and telling them to head to the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. The court decided that his actions would prevent him from a second White House term under the 14th Amendment’s “insurrection clause.” The clause states that those who previously took oaths to support the Constitution cannot engage in insurrection and later hold office again.

The state court put its ruling on hold until Jan. 4 so Trump can first seek review from the U.S. Supreme Court.

If the Colorado Supreme Court’s decision were to take effect, the former president’s name could not appear on the primary ballot for the 2024 presidential election in the state and the Colorado secretary of state could not count any write-in ballots cast for Trump.