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If a president assassinates his political rivals I don't think you can say it's, "an issue for voters or congress to decide on." That would be impossible, sinc
by riskable 2y ago
If a president assassinates his political rivals I don't think you can say it's, "an issue for voters or congress to decide on." That would be impossible, since anyone the voters wanted to replace the sitting executive or his allies would just be arrested or murdered outright (as an official act, no less!).
- legitster 2y agoI don't think anyone in the ruling outside of Sotomayor implies that murdering political rivals would fall under an official duty of the president as outlined in the constitution.
- insane_dreamer 2y agoI disagree, since a good many people seem ready to accept that Trump trying to overturn the results of a free and fair election (which in my book is pretty much on par with murdering political rivals since the point of murdering a rival is so that they don't get elected), is an "official duty".
- alluro2 2y agoWould the court also need to carefully consider and rule on whether arresting or murdering a disagreeing judge is an "official act" by the President?
- legitster 2y agoProbably not. Arresting disagreeing judges would be a violation of due process, as is murdering US citizens without a trial. At least that was the tentative conclusion last time this was brought up: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/feb/22/obama-brennan-paul-assassinations-filibuster https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/feb/22/obama-...
- spacemanspiff01 2y agoIt might be a violation of the law and clearly illegal, but that does not mean it is not an official act for which the president is immune.