I'm thinking the piece of metal that goes to the plastic part of the turn lever fits in a groove and should just slip out towards the middle of the column. Could be that who ever did the jb weld repairs has it glued in.
Best way to raise the turn signal switch is to take the connector lose from the column, under the dash, and unplug it. The wires will slide up through a protective sleeve. It wont come out but it will let you raise the turn signal switch up out of the way.