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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsBarr Wants to Hide Trump's Authoritarian Plans, But Trump Keeps Confessing
The smooth and congenial relationship between President Trump and William Barr went through a brief patch of turbulence last night, when Barr complained openly that Trumps highly public tweets about criminal cases make it impossible to do my job. Barr is deeply committed to a Trumpian program of using his powers to protect Trumps allies and harass Trumps adversaries, but he also understands that the process requires a sheen of public legitimacy. He needs to maintain the façade that every discrete decision made on Trumps behalf was made on its merits. Even despots like Vladimir Putin pretend the justice system is working independently, and not just leaving his friends alone and prosecuting people he wants to punish.
Last night, the White House gave official word that Trump had no issues with Barrs comment. All seemed well again in despotville.
But then this morning, Trump felt the itch to clear something up. Trump maintains the right to ask Barr to prosecute, or not prosecute, anybody for any reason. He hasnt done it, he says, but he could:
Link to tweet
?s=20
Obviously, if the president can direct anybody to be prosecuted or not, there is no rule of law. If there is no rule of law, there is no meaningful democracy
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/opinion/barr-wants-to-hide-trump-s-authoritarian-plans-but-trump-keeps-confessing/ar-BB100t5x?ocid=msn360
TDale313
(7,820 posts)Trump making it impossible for him to do his job? That was quit telling everyone!!!
SWBTATTReg
(22,156 posts)no crime, etc., harassed, thrown into jail, go through an expensive trial to be found innocent, and then you can't sue the DOJ (they have sovereign immunity, also known as governmental immunity). I don't know if this would be the case if mischief occurred in the filings of these types of lawsuits (filed just to harass, no standing what-so-ever in fact).
Perhaps this will open up a can of worms, in that if rump can't be sued because he's president (now), and then he opens the whole thing up himself (directing the DOJ to filing against others) for personal reasons and no other valid legitimate reason), his immunity to lawsuits disappears since he's abused that privilege.
This is what I have read into this process.