OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
A state GOP lawmaker in Alaska is lashing out at critics as he faces being removed from office over a so-called ‘disloyalty clause.’ State Rep. David Eastman is currently involved in a legal proceeding seeking his removal following his election to a fourth term last month over his affiliation with a group accused of taking part in the riot at the U.S. Capitol Building on Jan. 6, 2021. However, he has not been accused of going into the building.
Eastman, who commandingly won his race by 25 points, is on trial after an Alaskan resident accused him of violating the state’s “disloyalty clause” for his affiliation with the “constitutional service” group the Oath Keepers, according to court documents seen by The Daily Caller. The clause, which is found in the state constitution, says anyone who advocates for the overthrow of the government cannot hold office in Alaska.
“No person who advocates, or who aids or belongs to any party or organization or association which advocates, the overthrow by force or violence of the government of the United States or of the State shall be qualified to hold any public office of trust or profit under this constitution,” the clause reads.
But Eastman has adamantly rejected the accusation, while a First Amendment group has called the effort to remove him an exercise in “tyranny.”
“We’re expecting a ruling from the judge in the next few days,” Goriune Dudukgian, an attorney representing the plaintiff, told the outlet. “We’re proud of the case we put on and like our chances.”
Arguments in a trial over Wasilla Republican Rep. David Eastman’s eligibility to hold office concluded Wednesday. An Anchorage Superior Court judge is expected to issue a ruling on an expedited basis. https://t.co/VdOXGOxmvS
— Anchorage Daily News (@adndotcom) December 22, 2022
Alaska Public Media reported that Eastman attended then-President Donald Trump’s rally in Washington, D.C., that day, but he did not take part in any of the rioting nor did he enter any of the restricted areas surrounding the Capitol. But last month, two Oath Keepers members, including founder Stewart Rhodes, were convicted of engaging in a “seditious conspiracy” for their actions that day.
“This trial is proceeding as though the 1st Amendment had already been repealed,” Eastman told the DCNF. “That is a terrifying reality for the voters in my district. It is a fundamental American right that your vote will be counted. This lawsuit was filed to ensure that the voters in my district would not have their votes counted.”
The suit was filed by Matanuska-Susitna Borough resident, Randall Kowalke, who said over the summer: “I think the takeaway is, what’s our level of tolerance? What are we going to allow from our candidates or representatives? Are we going to allow full-blown communists? Jihad folks? Fascists? Particularly those that are supporting the overthrow of our government? I guess it’s time to find out.”
Alaska Public Media reported: “Attorneys representing Kowalke are asking Anchorage Superior Court Judge Jack McKenna to declare that Eastman is a member of the Oath Keepers, that the Oath Keepers advocate the overthrow of the U.S. government, and that the constitution’s disloyalty clause prohibits Eastman from holding office.”
“On the first point, Kowalke’s attorneys have already provided documentation showing Eastman is a ‘founding lifetime member’ of the group. For the second, they have been aided by last week’s sedition conviction, though it’s not clear whether the judge will rule that the entire group holds its leader’s views,” the report continued.
“The third point may be the most difficult: In order to succeed, Kowalke’s attorneys will have to demonstrate that the disloyalty clause doesn’t violate state and federal guarantees of free speech,” the report added, noting that for decades, courts have tossed out federal and state sedition statutes because of their unconstitutional nature.
If Kowalke’s attorneys are successful, Alaska Public Media reports that Eastman would be removed from office and replaced by the race’s No. 2 finisher, Republican Stuart Graham. If they are not successful, then the state’s disloyalty clause is likely to become as moot as similar language in other states.
From his jail cell in Virginia on Monday, Rhodes testified that the organization was not involved in planning any rioting on Jan. 6 and that any members of the group who went into the Capitol that day did so against his advice.
“I told them it was stupid for two reasons. One, it was not our mission that day, and two, doing that exposed us to persecution by political enemies who are taking advantage of that to persecute us, and that’s what happened to me,” he said, according to Anchorage Daily News.
