Along with over two dozen other Republicans, Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., will submit a straightforward resolution on Tuesday that declares that former President Donald Trump “did not engage in insurrection or rebellion against the United States.”
Gaetz has sixty co-sponsors for his resolution.
According to The Daily Mail, Gaetz sent an email to his fellow Republicans more than two weeks ago, pleading for their support.
An email from Gaetz’s staff that the outlet was able to receive stated, “You are receiving this email because your boss endorsed President Trump, and we would love to have your support as an original cosponsor before we send the resolution and the list of sponsors to the former President.”
Tuesday, Gaetz, along with twenty-five other Republicans, will introduce the resolution during a press conference. This is largely a symbolic gesture of support for Trump, as the resolution is unlikely to pass the Democratic-controlled Senate.
“The coalition of Republicans … seeks to clarify the stance of the House of Representatives be that President Trump did not participate in actions that would bar him from again holding public office,” Gaetz’s office stated in a statement. “The resolution directly states that ‘President Donald J. Trump did not engage in insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or give aid or comfort to the enemies thereof.’
The timing is deliberate; the Supreme Court will start hearing oral arguments on Thursday on the legitimacy of the Colorado Supreme Court’s ruling to strike Trump from the state’s primary ballot due to the 14th Amendment’s insurrectionist clause.
The highest court in Colorado declared that Trump should be barred from seeking the presidency because he engaged in insurrection on January 6, 2021. Shortly afterward, the secretary of state for Maine came to a similar conclusion and made the decision on her own to remove Trump from office.
In anticipation of the Supreme Court taking up the matter, both rulings were delayed. Considering Colorado’s Super Tuesday primary on March 5, the court is anticipated to issue a decision quickly. March 5 is also Maine’s GOP primary date.
As stated in Gaetz’s resolution, “This resolution is a no-brainer — controversial only to the most extreme of the far-left — and a statement of fact that every single Republican can be expected to support,” according to The Daily Mail. “If the left has the courage to interfere in our elections and weaponize the judicial system against our brethren, we must have the courage to express what is self-evident.”
Reps. Kelly Armstrong, R-N.D.; Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga.; Andy Biggs, R-Ariz.; and House Republican policy chair Gary Palmer, R-Ala. were among the initial co-sponsors of the bill.