If they accepted the idea that the 14th Amedment is self-executing, the Supreme Court would have backed Colorado in booting Trump from the state’s presidential ballot.
Instead, they threw Trump a lifeline, 9-0. They don’t rule on the law, they timidly rule on the political consequences. Via LawDork:
The U.S Supreme Court is expected to release opinions in one or more argued cases on Monday morning. The timing of the announcement strongly suggests a decision is coming in Donald Trump’s appeal of the Colorado Supreme Court decision that the Fourteenth Amendment bars Trump from being president and state law prevents his inclusion on the state’s presidential primary ballot.
The U.S. Supreme Court’s calendar only reflected the change on Sunday — a sign that there was last-minute finalization of a decision allowing its release on Monday. Back and forth over elements of the opinion or more likely disagreements among the majority opinion and concurring and/or dissenting opinions in a case are ordinary, but the court generally announces opinion days at least by the Friday before the week — so a Sunday announcement stands out.
Here’s the 9-0 ruling:
