One day before the anniversary of our Independence, the Supreme Court abandoned any illusion of their loyalty to our Constitution and declared that Presidents cannot be prosecuted for their actions, even after they leave office. By doing so they eliminated the concept of three equal branches of government. Presidents and former Presidents now have the powers of a monarch and sit out of reach of the judicial and legislative branches.
While the six judges on the Supreme Court who ruled in favor of presidential immunity did so for the benefit of Trump, the person first affected is Biden. He is, under the Supreme Court ruling, able to operate without the bounds of law that constrained all of his predecessors. There is nothing he can do within his official capacity that he can be held accountable for.
As a lifelong public servant, there is no doubt that Biden's loyalty is to the Constitution and he will continue to uphold the law. In fact, his first statement after the ruling was used to stress the way that the choice between the two candidates is even clearer now. Trump is a convicted felon who if elected will be free to pursue his stated goal of being a dictator on day one. There is now literally no one who can stop him.
However, the fact that Trump is waiting in the wings should give pause to anyone who values the future of democracy. Knowing that our country as we know it will be permanently changed if Trump is given a second chance at the office, can we ignore any opportunity to stop him? It is clear that accusations lodged by Trump are usually indicative of his own wrongdoing and he has spent the last four years talking a lot about cheating. If Biden ignores this threat in the name of democracy is he ensuring that last weekend may be the last Independence Day we celebrate?
- Thomas Jefferson
Carl Petersen is a parent advocate for public education, particularly for students with special education needs, who serves as the Education Chair for the Northridge East Neighborhood Council. As a Green Party candidate in LAUSD's District 2 School Board race, he was endorsed by Network for Public Education (NPE) Action. Dr. Diane Ravitch has called him "a valiant fighter for public schools in Los Angeles." For links to his blogs, please visit www.ChangeTheLAUSD.com. Opinions are his own.
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