With its disastrous immunity ruling and exquisite timing, the conservative Supreme Court majority has given us a Fourth to remember.
By Yvonne Abraham Globe Columnist,Updated July 3, 2024, 7:35 p.m.
Happy Fourth of July, friends!
On this day, we celebrate that massive moment in 1776 when the Continental Congress voted to break free of Britain, and the 13 colonies adopted the Declaration of Independence. Those fireworks and cookouts are all about celebrating America’s heroic rejection of monarchic rule, and the tyranny that came with it: We don’t do kings around here! Cue the fireworks!
Well, 248 years was a pretty good run.
Thanks to Monday’s ruling by the conservative supermajority on the Supreme Court — mini-monarchs themselves, unelected, and answerable to no one — the president of the United States is now above the law, just like an 18th century king. The conservatives decided that former president Donald Trump has near-absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for almost anything he might do in office — so long as he makes sure to say that what would otherwise be crimes were official acts.
Their decision not only kicks the legs out from under the current cases against Trump, but it ensures that, should he be reelected, he can behave as despotically as he wishes without worrying about being criminally prosecuted. He could openly offer pardons or government contracts in exchange for bribes or favors, and protect those who commit crimes as they carry out his illegal orders. He could demand that the Department of Justice investigate and bring sham charges against his enemies, even if he admits he is doing so as retribution or for political gain. And yes, as Justice Sonia Sotomayor said in her searing dissent, he could order the military to assassinate an opponent, and no court could touch him for it.
Related
US allies see a worrisome turn in presidential immunity rulingIn a volatile term, a fractured Supreme Court remade AmericaJudge delays Trump’s hush-money sentencing until at least September after high court immunity ruling
Stick a fork in the republic. Long live the king!
It’s clearer than ever that these justices dodged and lied through their teeth in their confirmation hearings, banging on about Roe v. Wade being settled law, respect for precedent, and no one being above the law. Well, now Roe is gone, stare decisis is stare deceased, and the extremist jurists who pose as originalists, supposedly bound solely by the intentions of the framers, have blown through all their oracles stood for.
Now, I’m no expert, but I’ve seen “Hamilton,” and I am pretty sure King George III is not the hero of that show. When the frothing monarch sings “You’ll be back,” to the rebels trying to shake off his tyranny, he’s supposed to look pathetic, not prophetic.
Also, a bunch of actual historians have pointed out that the very founders these judges worship are on the record about how they would have hated what is happening right now.
For example, Thomas Paine, hype-man of the American Revolution, wrote a wildly popular pamphlet in 1776 called “Common Sense” that built public support for independence. In it, Paine decried the king, who “hath shewn himself such an inveterate enemy to liberty, and discovered such a thirst for arbitrary power.” He was also pretty clear about the effect the new nation should be going for.
“But where says some is the King of America?” Paine wrote. “In America THE LAW IS KING. For as in absolute governments the King is law, so in free countries the law ought to be King; and there ought to be no other.”
And here is Alexander Hamilton, in 1788, saying very clearly that, unlike the king of Great Britain, no one, including a president, should be above the law in this country:
“The President of the United States would be liable to be impeached, tried, and, upon conviction of treason, bribery, or other high crimes or misdemeanors, removed from office; and would afterwards be liable to prosecution and punishment in the ordinary course of law,” he wrote.
The Declaration of Independence itself says, “a Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.”
Anybody who thinks a President Trump won’t exploit the bejesus out of this new unchecked power is lying or living under a rock. Just last Sunday, he escalated his promises to target his political opponents, supporting calls for military tribunals and the imprisonment of the president and vice president, Senators Mitch McConnell and Chuck Schumer, his own former VP Mike Pence and former Wyoming congresswoman Liz Cheney.
This is a cataclysm that should have people marching in the streets. But by all means, let’s keep spending every minute talking about Biden’s age instead.
Happy Independence Day! Pass the ketchup.
Globe columnist Yvonne Abraham can be reached at yvonne.abraham@globe.com.