BTN News: The Supreme Court has decided that former presidents are immune from serious crimes if those crimes were done as “official acts.” This is a big win for former President Donald Trump, who wants to avoid being prosecuted for trying to change the outcome of the election. However, some judges and Democratic leaders think this decision hurts democracy because it puts the president above the law.
The decision was supported by six conservative judges and opposed by three moderate ones. This means that the Department of Justice’s case against Trump for trying to overturn the last election will likely be delayed until after the next election. This delay is what Trump wants, and it could mean the case is dismissed.
The ruling does not give Trump full immunity for all his actions as president. It only covers actions that can be called “official acts” while he was in office. The court said Trump and other presidents have “absolute immunity” for actions under their constitutional authority. They also have “qualified immunity” for other official acts, but not for non-official acts. Lower courts will now decide which actions are official.
Several of Trump’s actions to overturn the 2020 election, like talking to Justice Department officials to stop the certification of state results and pressuring Vice President Mike Pence to nullify the certification by Congress, will likely be seen as official acts, giving him immunity.
This ruling could also affect the other three cases Trump faces. He claims he should have immunity in those cases too, which include electoral interference and mishandling classified documents. Experts say Trump has at least succeeded in delaying his trials until after the elections, so voters won’t know if he broke the law. If Trump wins the election, he could avoid prosecution while in office. He could also appoint an attorney general to drop federal charges and possibly pardon himself in federal cases (though not in the state case in Georgia).
Trump and his supporters celebrated the decision. “Great victory for our Constitution and democracy,” Trump wrote. Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson and other party members called it a win for Trump and future presidents. They hope it will stop Democrats from using the courts for political purposes.
Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, in her dissent, said she feared for democracy. She stated, “In every use of official power, the president is now a king above the law.” She said the ruling goes against the basic constitutional principle that no one is above the law.
Democratic leaders condemned the decision as a threat to American democracy. They warned it allows a president to use their office for serious crimes with no consequences, such as killing political rivals or organizing a coup.
President Joe Biden said the ruling is dangerous because it means presidential power is no longer limited by law. He said there will be almost no limits on what a president can do.
Jerrold Nadler, the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, warned the decision could lead to “a dictatorship by the former president.”
The New York Times editorialized that the basic principle of equality before the law was ignored. They accused the Supreme Court of moving towards restoring the monarchy that was rejected by the Declaration of Independence.
In related news, former Trump strategist and leader of a Trumpist faction, Steve Bannon, surrendered to authorities to start a four-month federal prison sentence in Connecticut. This was for defying congressional subpoenas in the investigation into the attempted coup. Before surrendering, Bannon predicted big Republican wins in upcoming elections and declared, “Victory or death… We will win or face the death of a constitutional republic,” during a rally outside the prison.
Bannon, blessed by a priest at the rally, faces another trial for allegedly misusing funds raised for building the border wall for personal gain.
