Senator Mitch McConnell, the minority leader in the Senate, delivered a severe blow to longtime ally Donald Trump, whose attorneys had argued before the Supreme Court that the president was entitled to broad immunity, by stating that he did not think presidents should be barred from criminal prosecution while in office.
On Thursday, the senator from Kentucky said on "Meet the Press" that he felt US presidents should be held responsible for any criminal activity, but he also thought that responsibility should have its bounds.
We will watch how the Supreme Court handles it, the 82-year-old congressman added. "The president clearly needs some kind of immunity or we would be in court every day."
The Republican senator said that he stood by remarks he made on February 13, 2021, not long after voting to spare Mr. Trump in his second attempt to be impeached over the events of the Capitol riot on January 6.
“President Trump is still liable for everything he did while he was in office as an ordinary citizen, unless the statute of limitations has run,” Senator McConnell said, despite the Senate's decision to acquit the former president. Nothing has escaped [him] so far.
He emphasized, saying, "It is not my decision to make."
On Thursday, the Supreme Court heard arguments about presidential immunity. In response to Special Counsel Jack Smith's accusations of 2020 election meddling, the former president's legal team said that he is immune from any federal prosecution.
To give Mr. Trump complete protection, the justices were hesitant.
Due to the possibility of politically motivated retaliation, Mr. Trump's attorneys voiced concern that a lack of presidential immunity would impair the president's capacity to carry out his duties. Fear of charges, prosecution, and jail might “distort the president’s decision-making, precisely when bold and fearless action is most needed,” according to Trump’s lawyer John Sauer.
The possibility of political persecution argument seemed to be well received by conservative judges.
Relying just on the prosecution's good intention may not always be sufficient, Chief Justice John Roberts said on Thursday. "You know how easy it is in many cases for a prosecutor to get a grand jury to bring an indictment."
Attorneys for Mr. Smith countered that no one is above the law and that the president does not have wide immunity. The president does not have total immunity, as liberal justices seemed to concur.
One question posed by Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson was, "Would not there be a significant risk that future presidents would be emboldened to commit crimes with abandon while they are in office if the potential for criminal liability is removed?"
On Thursday, the senator from Kentucky said on "Meet the Press" that he felt US presidents should be held responsible for any criminal activity, but he also thought that responsibility should have its bounds.
We will watch how the Supreme Court handles it, the 82-year-old congressman added. "The president clearly needs some kind of immunity or we would be in court every day."
The Republican senator said that he stood by remarks he made on February 13, 2021, not long after voting to spare Mr. Trump in his second attempt to be impeached over the events of the Capitol riot on January 6.
“President Trump is still liable for everything he did while he was in office as an ordinary citizen, unless the statute of limitations has run,” Senator McConnell said, despite the Senate's decision to acquit the former president. Nothing has escaped [him] so far.
He emphasized, saying, "It is not my decision to make."
On Thursday, the Supreme Court heard arguments about presidential immunity. In response to Special Counsel Jack Smith's accusations of 2020 election meddling, the former president's legal team said that he is immune from any federal prosecution.
To give Mr. Trump complete protection, the justices were hesitant.
Due to the possibility of politically motivated retaliation, Mr. Trump's attorneys voiced concern that a lack of presidential immunity would impair the president's capacity to carry out his duties. Fear of charges, prosecution, and jail might “distort the president’s decision-making, precisely when bold and fearless action is most needed,” according to Trump’s lawyer John Sauer.
The possibility of political persecution argument seemed to be well received by conservative judges.
Relying just on the prosecution's good intention may not always be sufficient, Chief Justice John Roberts said on Thursday. "You know how easy it is in many cases for a prosecutor to get a grand jury to bring an indictment."
Attorneys for Mr. Smith countered that no one is above the law and that the president does not have wide immunity. The president does not have total immunity, as liberal justices seemed to concur.
One question posed by Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson was, "Would not there be a significant risk that future presidents would be emboldened to commit crimes with abandon while they are in office if the potential for criminal liability is removed?"
