‘They want to deprive any popular politicians or citizens out there from participating in the process anymore,’ Pennsylvania state Sen. Doug Mastriano said
The progressive, $10 million, nonprofit organization trying to remove former President Donald Trump from primary ballots in multiple states has also been working to remove other politicians from office or from getting on the ballot through its self-described “aggressive legal action.”
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) has argued that anyone connected to the events of Jan. 6, 2021, at the U.S. Capitol should not hold office because they allegedly violated Section 3 of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The amendment states that if someone had previously taken an oath to support the Constitution and then engages in “insurrection or rebellion,” they may not hold civil or military office.
CREW is representing plaintiffs in a legal case calling for President Trump to be removed from ballots in Colorado. CREW board member and former U.S. Rep. Claudine Schneider is a plaintiff in the case.
It also filed amicus briefs in similar cases in Maine, Michigan, and Minnesota, and not only against President Trump. CREW is going after others seeking or currently holding office, bruising their reputation and, in some cases, forcing them into court.
Using the backdrop of Jan. 6, CREW has cast a wide net, reaching into Congress and state and local governments in at least 15 states, calling for the permanent removal of lawmakers and the prevention of certain candidates from ever getting on a ballot again.
For CREW’s argument to prevail, the events of Jan. 6, 2021, must be considered an insurrection or rebellion.
“Accountability for harms of Jan. 6, must go beyond Trump and extend to everyone who engaged in and incited the insurrection,” CREW’s website reads.
CREW did not respond to requests for comment.
CREW’s Other Targets
Pennsylvania State Sen. Doug Mastriano, a Republican who ran for governor, arranged for several buses to travel to Washington to hear President Trump’s speech Jan. 6, 2021.
CREW published a 26-page report in April 2023, titled, “An Insurrectionist in the Statehouse: The Case for Expelling Doug Mastriano from Office.” For nine months, it did not get much attention, but days before the recent anniversary of Jan. 6, the report was the subject of a press conference hosted by Pennsylvania Democratic state Sen. Art Haywood.
By Beth Brelje
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