Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows responded to criticism about the witnesses at the hearing that led to her decision to remove former President Donald Trump from the 2024 Republican presidential ballot.
She explained that the hearing was an administrative proceeding under Maine’s law, not a criminal court, and the standard was preponderance of the evidence.
Bellows stated that her decision was based on live testimony, exhibits, and thousands of pages of evidence, including reports from various sources. (Trending: Transgender Actor ‘Purposefully Misgendered’ By Airline Employee)
Democrat Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows claims she was "duty bound" to unilaterally declare former President Trump is not "qualified" to appear on the state's primary ballot pic.twitter.com/EVuFg7K733
— AnalyzingAmerica (@AnalyzAmerica) January 4, 2024
“You’ve cited that hearing a bunch. And we looked into it. At that hearing, there was only testimony from three witnesses. Two of them were complainants, one was a law professor, none of them have firsthand factual knowledge of the events that are at issue. So, how did you decide that what you heard in that hearing was enough to draw the conclusion that you did here, that Trump should not be on the ballot because of your determination that he engaged in the insurrection? That’s not even something Jack Smith has charged him with,” said host Kaitlan Collins.
“It’s important to understand that an administrative hearing under Maine’s Administrative Procedure Act and in terms of implementing election law is different than a criminal proceeding in a criminal court,” said Bellows.
“The standard is preponderance of the evidence. And furthermore, part of the hearing record — and my decision was based exclusively on the record before me — is not only live testimony that is subject to cross-examination, but also exhibits that are produced and submitted by the parties. And, in fact, in this situation, there were thousands of pages of exhibits, which I reviewed, including the bipartisan January 6 report, a bipartisan Senate report, a GAO report, a Defense Department report,” she continued.
She emphasized that her decision was based solely on the facts before her, the Constitution, and the rule of law, and the process may move through different courts, including potentially the U.S. Supreme Court.
“So, there was substantial evidence that complied with the Maine Administrative Procedure Act submitted in this proceeding that was subject to my review. And my decision was based solely on the facts before me at the hearing and on the Constitution and the rule of law. And it’s part of a process here in our state that now goes to Superior Court and then potentially to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court and then potentially to the U.S. Supreme Court,” explained the Secretary of State.
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