Politics

Trump Declares Victory After A Judge Blocked California’s Attempt To Keep Him Off The Ballot

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President Donald Trump declared victory Wednesday after a judge blocked a California law keeping his name off the state’s ballot ahead of the 2020 election.

Judge Morrison England Jr. officially blocked the law Tuesday afternoon, giving the president a major victory pending a California appeal. The law, passed in July, would have required any candidate running for president to give the IRS tax forms for the past five years.

“I won the right to be a presidential candidate in California, in a major Court decision handed down yesterday. It was filed against me by the Radical Left Governor of that State to tremendous Media hoopla. The VICTORY, however, was barely covered by the Fake News. No surprise!” Trump told his Twitter followers.

I won the right to be a presidential candidate in California, in a major Court decision handed down yesterday. It was filed against me by the Radical Left Governor of that State to tremendous Media hoopla. The VICTORY, however, was barely covered by the Fake News. No surprise!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 2, 2019

Democrats and other activists have long-criticised the president’s decision not to release his tax returns, so the law was not a surprise.

“These are extraordinary times and states have a legal and moral duty to do everything in their power to ensure leaders seeking the highest offices meet minimal standards, and to restore public confidence,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement in July.

England appeared to sympathize with lawmakers’ intent. “[W]hile this Court understands and empathizes with the motivations that prompted California,” he said in his decision, “the Act’s provisions likely violate the Constitution and the laws of the United States.”

England put a temporary hold on the law in September.