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What is the functional difference between the President having immunity for “official acts” and the powers granted to the German President under Article 48 of the Weimar Constitution? (lemm.ee)

submitted 4 months ago by BmeBenji@lemm.ee to c/asklemmy@lemmy.ml

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For reference: Article 48 Wikipedia I’m trying to understand how anyone with any knowledge of the history of dictators could possibly justify granting a president unchecked “official” power so if anyone has any actual theories I am ALL ears.

(page 2) 8 comments

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[–] corsicanguppy@lemmy.ca -5 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago)

Fun fact: The original 'spam' was posted once; just, it was posted to hundreds of USENet readers at the same time. Hundreds, Carl!

[+] oxjox@lemmy.ml -14 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago) (11 children)

As I understand it, POTUS has absolute immunity for core acts as specifically defined in the constitution. There are other official acts the president may conduct that are not strictly defined. There's a presumed immunity for these actions but that does not mean they can not be challenged or that a president can not be impeached. And then there are actions a person holding office as president of the US may conduct outside their role as president which are by no means immune from criminal prosecution.

So, from what I'm reading, this ruling hasn't really changed very much. It actually seems to me that it holds a president more accountable for their actions as it strengthens the guidelines they must follow as president.

Now, how congress goes about utilizing these guidelines in a bipartisan matter is 100% always going to be a concern. There's going to be a lot of back and forth and forth and back to more clearly define what "official acts" are. Because our politics are so toxic now, this is likely going to have a monumental impact on the momentum of the already agonizingly slow to do anything federal government.

So, it's up to voters to decide if they want Washington to work for them in a meaningful dinner table manner or perpetually act as a court to hold politicians accountable for their actions. We still, currently, have the choice to move forward or stay stuck in 2020.

In regard to the Reich Constitution, POTUS has always had most of these rights. In instances of political unrest or natural disaster, the president has power to declare an emergency. Funding still has to be agreed upon by Congress.

Also, FWIW, SCOTUS very clearly states in the middle of Page 8 "The President is not above the law."

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.

[–] Bitrot@lemmy.sdf.org -4 points 4 months ago (4 children)

I think this makes sense, it will be interesting to see how it plays out. I don’t agree with some of the things I’ve seen online about having seal team six assassinate political rivals just because one uses the power of the office does not mean it is an official act of the office. That is where courts would decide which is true. Previously they were making the argument for absolute immunity for everything, the Supreme Court said that isn’t the case.

I think there is trepidation because there aren’t precedents yet and this is happening in the context of January 6 and the big lie. I don’t think it ends Trump’s trouble, his speaking to the public that day was on the behalf of DJT, not the president. It gets more murky if someone questions not sending the national guard, was that an official act and just a bad call? The hope would be some sort of reasonable president standard is created but really who knows.

[–] oxjox@lemmy.ml -4 points 4 months ago (4 children)

I appreciate the few level-headed people observing this historic event.

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