Luttig: Trump, other presidents now ‘above the law’

Sarah Fortinsky

1 July 2024 at 3:43 pm·2-min read

Retired federal judge J. Michael Luttig said former President Trump and other U.S. presidents can now be considered “above the law” after the Supreme Court ruled Monday that core presidential powers are immune from prosecution.

“It can never again be said that in America ‘no man is above the law,’” Luttig, a longtime conservative jurist on the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, said in a post on the social platform X.

“The Supreme Court held today that the President of the United States — and the former president in particular — is above the law, and the only person in America who is above the law,” Luttig added.

The Monday ruling, which was decided along ideological lines, marked a significant victory for Trump. It found that presidents have absolute immunity for actions taken within their core official responsibilities, and they have presumptive immunity for all other official acts.

The 6-3 decision all but guarantees that the 2020 election interference case against Trump will not head to trial before the November election. The ruling sends the case back to the district court to determine if specific actions taken by Trump leading up to the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot fall outside the immunity protections.

Luttig has in recent years been among the most high-profile conservative critics of Trump and his efforts to stay in power after losing the 2020 election; the former judge testified during the Jan. 6 House select committee’s hearings.

He has also criticized the high court for past decisions involving Trump, including in determining that the 14th Amendment’s insurrection ban did not disqualify Trump from the ballot.

The Supreme Court’s latest ruling comes four months before Election Day, when Trump hopes to retake the White House. The former president has floated removing the special counsel who brought two indictments against him if he were elected.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.

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