Cawthorn Lawyers Up In “Insurrectionist” Challenge

The New York Times reports:

Mr. Cawthorn, 26, who is in his first term in Congress, has denounced the case as an egregious misreading of the 14th Amendment, but he has retained James Bopp Jr., one of the most prominent conservative campaign lawyers in the country, as counsel.

Mr. Bopp, in an interview, declared the matter “the most frivolous case I’ve ever seen,” but allowed that what he called an “unethical” exploitation of North Carolina law by “competent” lawyers could pose a real threat to Mr. Cawthorn — and by extension, to others labeled “insurrectionists” by liberal lawyers.

That is because North Carolina’s election statute offers challengers a remarkably low bar to question a candidate’s constitutional qualifications for office. Once someone establishes a “reasonable suspicion or belief” that a candidate is not qualified, the burden shifts to the officeseeker to prove otherwise.

Read the full article.

Bopp has been party to multiple “voter fraud” suits and has represented hate groups in cases related to LGBT rights and same-sex marriage. Last year he was the lead counsel in an anti-vaccine case brought by Dr. Demon Semen’s group. He has appeared on JMG many times since 2010.

As lawyers seek to disqualify a Republican congressman as an insurrectionist in a novel application of the 14th Amendment, it could be a test case for a bigger target now living at Mar-a-Lago. ⁦@jonathanweisman⁩ https://t.co/f8Kn87SLEs

— Peter Baker (@peterbakernyt) January 26, 2022