Article 6NZBX The supreme court’s presidential immunity ruling mocks the rule of law | Corey Brettschneider

The supreme court’s presidential immunity ruling mocks the rule of law | Corey Brettschneider

by
Corey Brettschneider
from US news | The Guardian on (#6NZBX)

Citizens must make this presidential election about rescuing our democracy from authoritarianism

The US supreme court found this week that former presidents have presumptive immunity from prosecution for official acts". This ruling doesn't just place Donald Trump above the law. The true danger of the opinion is that it could protect precisely the kind of official acts that might destroy the American republic itself.

The origin of the idea that the official acts of a president are immune from prosecution is found in a case about a fired whistleblower. In 1970, President Richard Nixon fired A Ernest Fitzgerald, an air force management analyst, in retaliation for his publicizing information about cost overruns. Fitzgerald brought a civil suit against Nixon, seeking damages for his dismissal. The supreme court sided with Nixon, granting the president absolute immunity from damages liability predicated on his official acts".

Continue reading...
External Content
Source RSS or Atom Feed
Feed Location http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/rss
Feed Title US news | The Guardian
Feed Link https://www.theguardian.com/us-news
Feed Copyright Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. 2024
Reply 0 comments