What are the investigations against Donald Trump? Can he still be president?

(CNN Spanish) — Map of anti-inquiries Donald Trump It’s a cobwebbed tangle: There are ongoing criminal and civil investigations, as well as counterclaims filed by the former president himself. But this, according to a constitutional lawyer, does not prevent him – or anyone in his unique position – from running for president and even ruling if he wins.

The Former President He has not been formally charged with any crime by a government, a state, or a city, but he is under investigation by all three. He denies wrongdoing in all matters involving him, whether personal, political or economic.

Of all the issues on which the former president’s misconduct is being investigated, there are two related to his administration: what role he played in the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol by a mob of rebels. Attempts to block Congress from certifying the Electoral College votes that gave Joe Biden the presidency, and his handling of classified information (highly demonstrated when the FBI raided his home in Mar-a-Lago, Florida in search of documents the former president may have illegally removed from the White House).

In the background, related to the attack on the Capitol are the lies about what they purport to be widespread election fraud and which former President Trump has not stopped repeating since he reluctantly left the White House. In addition to the judicial investigations, the Jan. 6 attack is under investigation by a special committee of the House of Representatives, which recently called him to testify.

These are the major investigations currently underway.

Could legal challenges stop Trump from running for president or president?

In short, according to constitutional lawyer Rafael Benalver, consulted by CNN en Español, the answer is no. The explanation is in the Magna Carta, he explains, which establishes only three conditions for a person to be president: they must be born in the United States, they must have lived in the country for at least 14 years, and they must be 35 years or older.. “At no time does the Constitution say that being convicted of a crime or prosecuted or imprisoned can prevent you from running for president or serving,” he says. The country is North America. In other words, according to the expert, it is “theoretically possible” that a person can rule even in an orange suit.

The debate over possible limits on Trump’s candidacy revolves, in part, around a 1978 law that says people accused of stealing Homeland Security documents cannot hold federal government office. This raises doubts in the hypothetical case that the president is accused and found guilty of this type of crime in the framework of one of the ongoing investigations. However, Benalvar argues that the law could be declared unconstitutional because it adds a requirement that is not in the Constitution and “the Constitution overrides any law enacted by Congress,” so it is difficult to imagine that legislators could add a fourth requirement.

The thing is, until now, this principle has never had to be put to the test. If the processes move in that direction – the time limit must also be taken into account, because if the former president is found guilty in a case, he can appeal – a court with a hierarchy to eventually rule the Supreme Court.

Angela Reyes and Zachary B. With information from Wolfe et al.