The most freakish of Donald Trump’s many, many freakish talents is the ability to keep himself in the public eye, in the middle of things, or just plain in the way. And just when you think he’s reached terminal saturation, he manages to find some entirely unexpected way to shove himself back in the limelight.

The newest one: a sweeping decision, by the state Supreme Court of Colorado, that the former US president is not qualified to be on the state’s presidential ballot next year. The reason: a somewhat obscure amendment to the US Constitution that disqualifies from any further public office any elected or appointed official who, having sworn an oath to uphold the laws of the country, engaged in insurrection against it, or aided and abetted such an insurrection.

US presidential candidate Donald Trump can’t stay out of the news, which suits his agenda.Credit: AP

It dates back to the Civil War, and was designed to keep officials who sided with the South the heck out of government. Lawsuits challenging Trump on this point have been percolating up through various state courts since the attack on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021. Thus far, results have been mixed because of various technical legal issues. Whatever the other states do, the ruling seems destined to be decided by the US Supreme Court.

The provision seems plain at face value but, as with so many issues around Trump, it’s not that simple. This is one of those political and legal issues that leaves nothing but questions.

For example, what, exactly, is an insurrection? And who gets to decide what an insurrection is? Does a candidate have to be convicted of a crime? If not, can a state or even a county election official essentially deem someone guilty unilaterally?

If a local official does remove a candidate because of this provision, is any entity allowed to reconsider or overrule that decision once it is made? Can that decision be appealed against and, if so, would this be a state or a federal matter? (In America, remember, elections are overseen on the local level.) And won’t all of this take up a lot of time in the middle of an election season?

And by the way, shouldn’t Congress have passed a law making all of this clear at some point?

The matter is pressing – Colorado is just weeks away from printing its primary ballots. Will the US Supreme Court take the case? If it does, will it expedite the matter ... or take its sweet time?