![CNN's Jake Tapper questioned Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold on whether the five-day trial former President Donald Trump had in the state was adequate in comparison to the case against him. [Screenshot CNN]](https://images.dailycaller.com/image/width=960,height=411,fit=cover,f=auto/https://cdn01.dailycaller.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Screenshot-2024-02-08-at-11.22.25-AM-e1707409412250.png "CNN's Jake Tapper questioned Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold on whether the five-day trial former President Donald Trump had in the state was adequate in comparison to the case against him. [Screenshot CNN]")
CNN’s Jake Tapper questioned Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold on whether the five-day trial former President Donald Trump had in the state was adequate in comparison to the case against him.
The Colorado Supreme Court ruled 4-3 in December that Trump is ineligible to be on the state’s primary ballot under Sec. 3 of the 14th Amendment. Trump appealed the ruling to the Supreme Court. Griswold has urged the Supreme Court to uphold the Colorado Supreme Court’s decision, arguing Trump “engaged in insurrection and was disqualified under the Constitution from the Colorado Ballot.”
The Supreme Court is hearing oral arguments Thursday regarding the case. (RELATED: Colorado Secretary Of State Who Supports Removing Trump From Ballot Attended Private Biden Campaign Fundraiser)
Griswold first acknowledged Trump has not been charged with insurrection by special counsel Jack Smith but argued Sec. 3 of the 14th Amendment is a civil procedure rather than a criminal court case. Griswold then said Trump’s five-day hearing in Colorado coupled with the state’s Supreme Court case culminated in the courts finding Trump did engage in insurrection.
“Five days of trial, while I know that he had an opportunity to present a defense and all of that, that doesn’t seem like that extensive a trial for such a serious charge,” Tapper said.
“Well, believe it or not, Donald Trump didn’t even use his full amount of time allotted to him by the court. He was able to call every single witness that he wanted to call. He presented all of his testimony and actually did not use several hours allotted to him,” Griswold said. “On top of that, he refused to appear himself, he refused to take a deposition, so I do think that this angle that ‘Oh, he wasn’t afforded due process,’ is incorrect. He was afforded due process. A five-day court trial and then months of briefing and different sidebar arguments with the court is a sufficient trial.”
“For the record, I didn’t say he wasn’t afforded due process, I certainly think he was, it just doesn’t seem like an extensive trial for such a serious charge.”
The challenge had worked its way through several courts with Colorado Judge Sarah Wallace ruling in November that Trump was not an “officer of the United States” who could be disqualified under the 14th Amendment though ruled Trump did engage in an insurrection “through incitement.”
Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows also issued a ruling disqualifying Trump from the state’s ballot under the same section of the Constitution. Trump has appealed that ruling as well.