The pseudonym "Philo Vaihinger" has been abandoned. All posts have been and are written by me, Joseph Auclair.

Saturday, April 20, 2019

Why is the president above the law?

The justice department reads in the invisible ink of the constitution that a sitting president cannot be indicted because it would distract him from his work, and recommends instead the far less disturbing remedy of impeachment which would distract not only the president but also the entire congress.

Ah, that's much more sensible.

Trump tampered with witnesses. These Senate Republicans voted to oust Bill Clinton for doing just that.

It is against federal law to tamper with a witness in an “official proceeding” such as Mueller’s investigation. 

But Mueller’s team declined to conclude whether or not Trump’s actions were criminal, in part because justice department policy holds that sitting presidents may not be indicted.

In a move that has attracted sharp criticism from Democrats, William Barr, the attorney general, decided that Trump had not committed obstruction.

Clinton was impeached by the House of Representatives in December 1998 on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice. 

The obstruction charge said he committed witness tampering by trying to “corruptly influence” the potential testimony of his secretary Betty Currie, and urged the former White House intern Monica Lewinsky to submit a false affidavit in a lawsuit against him.

Clinton was acquitted by the Senate. But 14 current Republican senators, some of whom were then serving in the House, voted either to impeach or convict Clinton on the obstruction charge. 

Some specifically cited his actions toward the witnesses when explaining their votes.

The Republicans include Mitch McConnell, Chuck Grassley, Lindsey Graham, Pat Roberts, Mike Crapo, Mike Enzi, James Inhofe, Richard Shelby, Roy Blunt, Richard Burr, Jerry Moran, Rob Portman, Roger Wicker, and John Thune.

The story does not tell us who were the Democrats who voted, successfully, to acquit.

What contemptible trash these politicians are.

No comments:

Post a Comment