God Bless America

From the mountains, to the prairies, 

To the oceans white with foam-- 

God bless America. my home, sweet home.

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Supreme Court Gives Trump Absolute Immunity

The front pediment of the Supreme Court building.

CBS News reports:

 

NBC News reports:

 

This is a black day in American history.  In a momentous, breathtaking, party-line decision released this morning, the six Republican-appointed justices (three of them appointed by Trump) ruled that Trump - along with all former and future presidents - has "absolute immunity" and cannot be prosecuted for any "official act" during his presidency.  The Supreme Court summarizes its decision (read the full document here) -- emphasis mine:

Under our constitutional structure of separated powers, the nature of Presidential power entitles a former President to absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for actions within his conclusive and preclusive constitutional authority. And he is entitled to at least presumptive immunity from prosecution for all his official acts. There is no immunity for unofficial acts. 

This case poses a question of lasting significance: When may a former President be prosecuted for official acts taken during his Presidency? In answering that question, unlike the political branches and the public at large, the Court cannot afford to fixate exclusively, or even primarily, on present exigencies. Enduring separation of powers principles guide our decision in this case. The President enjoys no immunity for his unofficial acts, and not everything the President does is official. The President is not above the law. But under our system of separated powers, the President may not be prosecuted for exercising his core constitutional powers, and he is entitled to at least presumptive immunity from prosecution for his official acts. That immunity applies equally to all occupants of the Oval Office.

The three Democratic-appointed justices dissented.  Justice Sotomayor's dissent was particularly irate (pp. 68-97):

Today’s decision to grant former Presidents criminal immunity reshapes the institution of the Presidency. It makes a mockery of the principle, foundational to our Constitution and system of Government, that no man is above the law. Relying on little more than its own misguided wisdom about the need for “bold and unhesitating action” by the President, ante, at 3, 13, the Court gives former President Trump all the immunity he asked for and more. Because our Constitution does not shield a former President from answering for criminal and treasonous acts, I dissent. , , ,

Looking beyond the fate of this particular prosecution, the long-term consequences of today’s decision are stark. The Court effectively creates a law-free zone around the President, upsetting the status quo that has existed since the Founding. . . .  The President of the United States is the most powerful person in the country, and possibly the world. When he uses his official powers in any way, under the majority’s reasoning, he now will be insulated from criminal prosecution. Orders the Navy’s Seal Team 6 to assassinate a political rival? Immune. Organizes a military coup to hold onto power? Immune. Takes a bribe in exchange for a pardon? Immune. Immune, immune, immune.

Let the President violate the law, let him exploit the trappings of his office for personal gain, let him use his official power for evil ends. Because if he knew that he may one day face liability for breaking the law, he might not be as bold and fearless as we would like him to be. That is the majority’s message today. Even if these nightmare scenarios never play out, and I pray they never do, the damage has been done. The relationship between the President and the people he serves has shifted irrevocably. In every use of official power, the President is now a king above the law. 

Never in the history of our Republic has a President had reason to believe that he would be immune from criminal prosecution if he used the trappings of his office to violate the criminal law. Moving forward, however, all former Presidents will be cloaked in such immunity. If the occupant of that office misuses official power for personal gain, the criminal law that the rest of us must abide [by] will not provide a backstop.

With fear for our democracy, I dissent. 

The Court's reasoning on both sides of the case is nuanced and detailed, and requires an understanding of the basics of law and government to fully comprehend.  (See the wikiarticle Sovereign Immunity and related topics.)  None of which matters to Trump and his followers.  He and they will take it as a Get-Out-of-Jail-Free card, a license to kill, complete freedom to do whatever he wants.

And he has already said he wants to be president for life, terminate the Constitution, and kill his political enemies.  Now he has all the justification he needs to do whatever he wants, with no consequences.

It's a helluva mess, fellas.  Instead of being the backstop of democracy, the six Republican justices have sold the country down the river.  And they knew exactly what they were doing - they aren't ignorant, dimwitted "deplorables" out in the boonies.  They know the effect this ruling will have on Trump's court cases and on the election.  They know.  

The only chance left to stop the madness is the ballot box - we have to save ourselves, because the politicized Supreme Court certainly won't. So Democrats and all others who aren't in league with the devil had better sure turn out in droves for this election.  It doesn't matter if Biden or someone else is the candidate - the only thing to do is Vote Blue, No Matter Who.

God help us all.

FYI:  Opinion polls show that voters are evenly split (within the margin of error) between Biden and Trump.  Your Head Trucker cannot understand how half the population intends to vote for Trump, but go look at the figures for yourself:  

Nationwide opinion polling for the 2024 United States presidential election (Wikipedia)

Update: This evening, President Biden addressed the nation from the White House, succinctly and eloquently denouncing the Supreme Court's ruling: 

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Sunday Drive: The Stars and Stripes Forever

Who knew our grand old march had words?

The Dallas quartet Acoustix performs it somewhere in England, 1995.

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Vitruvian Men

Call it a summer fling. 

 

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Biden Must Go

This is all I saw of last night's presidential debate, and all I needed to see:

 

I haven't blogged much about politics these last few years, and for good reason:  it's not safe to speak freely in America anymore.  And the vicious madness of current politics is not good for my mental equanimity.

But I will say that for the good of the country, Biden ought to decline the nomination at the Democratic Convention next month and let some other Democrat run for election this November.

Who that would be, I haven't the faintest idea.  Pete Buttigieg is the only politician I know of who is smart enough and good enough to be the leader of the free world.  He's sharp as a tack, he's got heart, and he's got balls.  But Pete is still a bit too young, and needs more experience at the top of the ladder.

What about Kamala, you say.  Well, what about her?  She seemed like a woman who would really make a mark on Washington when she was elected Veep - but since then has largely faded into the woodwork.  My impression is that Biden has kept her on the bench all this long time, and she's dutifully kept her mouth shut about it.  She's a cypher to me - an unknown quantity.  A fearless, outspoken woman who came out swinging just might energize the the party faithful and capture many voters' attention.  But who knows.

However -- and remember, I told you Biden was too old five years ago! -- the choice before us now is to vote for a bad man who would be an incompetent president (to put it very mildly) -- or to vote for a good man who would also be an incompetent president.  Both are unfit for office, albeit for very different reasons.

A terrible choice.  Whichever way it turns out, we lose, and the world loses.  Big time.

The stakes are too high to be indifferent about this election.  God bless Joe Biden, who deserves our thanks and respect for doing all he could do -- but he should now yield the scepter to a younger and more vigorous man or woman.  Someone who can pick up the baton and win the race, if there is anyone.  It's not just about parties - it's about the continuation of democracy, or the hell of dictatorship.  It's about the lives of millions of people all around the world.  It's about Good versus Evil, and that's no joke.

There, I've said it.  That's my good deed for today.  Make of it what you will.

P. S. --  The more I think about it, a Harris-Kinzinger "unity" ticket might be a real humdinger.  Hmm.

Update, 6/28, 11:30 p.m.:  It's cold comfort, but I see the Editorial Board of the New York Times agrees with me:

“The president appeared on Thursday night as the shadow of a great public servant. He struggled to explain what he would accomplish in a second term. He struggled to respond to Mr. Trump’s provocations. He struggled to hold Mr. Trump accountable for his lies, his failures and his chilling plans. More than once, he struggled to make it to the end of a sentence,” the board wrote in an opinion piece published Friday.

“The greatest public service Mr. Biden can now perform is to announce that he will not continue to run for re-election. As it stands, the president is engaged in a reckless gamble. There are Democratic leaders better equipped to present clear, compelling and energetic alternatives to a second Trump presidency. There is no reason for the party to risk the stability and security of the country by forcing voters to choose between Mr. Trump’s deficiencies and those of Mr. Biden. It’s too big a bet to simply hope Americans will overlook or discount Mr. Biden’s age and infirmity that they see with their own eyes,” the Times also said.

Biden is manifestly unfit for the highest job in the world, and the most demanding.  To ignore what is right in front of our eyes is utterly foolish; that's exactly what we reproach the Republicans for doing in the face of all Trump's wickedness, isn't it?  It would be disloyalty to our country to pretend all is well, nothing to worry about. Do you care more about your party or your country?

The board went on to say it would still support Biden as its “unequivocal pick” if the choice remains between him and former President Donald Trump.

Well, yes - if the choice is between Hitler and Pee-wee Herman, you have to go with the latter.  But that's a damn rotten shame.  

Roge Karma summarizes the current state of play in the Atlantic:

As of last night, there are no plausible theories left of how Biden could win the election. Last night was the test of whether Biden was up for the job of campaigning, and he failed it. This wasn’t just a weak performance, like Ronald Reagan’s first debate in 1984 and Barack Obama’s in 2012. The man could hardly speak. To believe that things will somehow turn around come September, when the next debate is scheduled, would be delusional.

The alternative to a Biden candidacy is for the president to voluntarily drop out of the race and either handpick his preferred successor or leave it entirely up to Democratic National Convention delegates to select a new candidate in August. Both come with significant risks; neither has a high probability of working. Vice President Kamala Harris, the most natural choice, may be even less popular than Biden, and other options, such as California Governor Gavin Newsom, are totally unproven at the national level. But the notion that a younger, more energetic, more articulate candidate could defeat Trump is at least plausible. Biden turning things around is not.

Your Head Trucker says, without a new quarterback and smart, dramatic, honest game plan to turn things around, we're fucked.  And I mean all of us:  the country, the world, the whole human race.  Remember you heard it here first.

As Elizabeth Bruenig writes, also in the Atlantic:

The candidates said some factual things and some false things, but only one message came across as true: Our nation is shambling along the road to hell, and there doesn’t appear to be an off-ramp. “We are living in a rat’s nest,” Trump said, right for the wrong reasons. “We’re like a bunch of stupid people,” he went on; “we’re a failing nation.” Absolutely, but not because of migrants or the Chinese or the Russians: This mess is made in America, and all of us are going to suffer for it.

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Kinzinger Endorses Biden

Adam Kinzinger is a true patriot and a real man.  I admire him.

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Mano a Mano

Two studly gymnasts act out a love affair.  Wow.

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Sunday Drive: Dancing in the Street

Summer's here!  Martha and the Vandellas perform their big hit on Where the Action Is, 1966:

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Waitin' for the Weekend

Come on in, make yourself comfortable.

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Fatherhood

Last week, Pete and Chasten Buttigieg spoke to CBS Sunday Morning about the experience of raising their son and daughter. 

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Sunday Drive: Delibes, Flower Duet

The lovely duet from Lakmé, as performed at the Philharmonie de Paris in 2023 by Nadine Sierra and Pretty Yende; this piece is a great favorite of M.P.'s, who is much more au fait with grand opera than your Head Trucker.

 

A recent video about Ms. Yende's remarkable journey from a childhood in apartheid-era South Africa to the heights of the operatic world:

And here is a 2017 interview with the American-born Ms. Sierra on French television (in English):

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