BIDEN SAYS SCOTUS DECISION SETS 'DANGEROUS PRECEDENT'

The Supreme Court on Monday rejected Donald Trump's sweeping claim of "absolute" immunity from criminal prosecution in his federal election subversion case, but said former presidents are entitled to some protections for "official" acts taken while in the White House.

The ruling affects whether Trump faces a federal trial this year on four felony counts brought by special counsel Jack Smith, including conspiracy to defraud the U.S. and obstruction of an official proceeding, for his attempts to overturn his 2020 election loss to President Joe Biden. Trump pleaded not guilty and has denied any wrongdoing.

The justices are sending the case back to the trial court to determine what acts alleged in Smith's indictment constitute official duties that could be protected from liability and which are not.

 

Latest Developments

Jul 1, 8:21 PM

'There are no kings in America': Biden reacts to SCOTUS ruling on immunity

President Joe Biden addressed the Supreme Court's historic decision on presidential immunity Monday, saying the ruling "fundamentally changed" the limits to America's highest office.

"This nation was founded on the principle that there are no kings in America," Biden said.

"Each of us is equal before the law," he continued. "No one is above the law, not even the president of the United States."

"Today's decision almost certainly means that there are virtually no limits on what a president can do," Biden said.

Addressing the charges Trump faces for actions taken to overturn the results of the 2020 election, Biden said, "The public has a right to know the answer about what happened on Jan. 6 before they are asked to vote again this year."

Ahead of the November election, Biden said the American people have to decide if they want to "entrust" the presidency once again to Donald Trump, "now knowing he'll be even more emboldened to do whatever he pleases, whenever he wants to do it."

 
Jul 1, 7:55 PM

Biden says SCOTUS decision sets 'dangerous precedent'

President Joe Biden addressed the Supreme Court’s ruling Monday, which said former President Donald Trump is entitled to some immunity from criminal prosecution for actions taken to overturn results of the 2020 election.

SCOTUS' 6-3 decision made it unlikely the former president would be tried before the November 2024 election.

"Today's decision almost certainly means that there are virtually no limits on what a president can do," Biden said.

"This is a fundamentally new principle, and it's a dangerous precedent because the power of the office will no longer be constrained by the law, even including Supreme Court of the United States," Biden continued, warning, "The only limits will be self-imposed posed by the president alone."

Biden delivered his remarks from the White House’s Cross Hall Monday.

 
Jul 1, 6:17 PM

Biden set to deliver remarks on SCOTUS ruling

President Joe Biden will deliver remarks on the Supreme Court's immunity ruling this evening from the White House at 7:45 p.m. ET.

Biden is returning to the White House from Camp David, where his family, including first lady Jill Biden, son Hunter Biden and their grandchildren have been for a pre-scheduled gathering.

 
Jul 1, 4:05 PM

Supreme Court's liberal justices warn of 'law-free zone'

While both the conservative and liberal Supreme Court justices agreed its ruling has far-reaching implications for the future of the presidency, Justice Sonia Sotomayor said the impact would be chilling.

"Looking beyond the fate of this particular prosecution, the long-term consequences of today's decision are stark," she wrote. "The Court effectively creates a law-free zone around the President, upsetting the status quo that has existed since the Founding," she said in her dissent.

MORE: Supreme Court's liberal justices warn of 'law-free zone' stemming from Trump immunity ruling

Sotomayor was joined in her dissent by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson.

Jackson described the majority's threshold for deciding immunity on a case-by-case basis as complicated and convoluted. The model they laid out, she said, could leave presidents feeling more emboldened to act unlawfully.

"Having now cast the shadow of doubt over when -- if ever -- a former President will be subject to criminal liability for any criminal conduct he engages in while on duty, the majority incentivizes all future Presidents to cross the line of criminality while in office, knowing that unless they act 'manifestly or palpably beyond [their] authority, they will be presumed above prosecution and punishment alike," she wrote.

Chief Justice John Roberts pushed back against the liberal dissents, saying they "strike a tone of chilling doom that is wholly disproportionate to what the Court actually does today."

"Like everyone else, the President is subject to prosecution in his unofficial capacity. But unlike anyone else, the President is a branch of government, and the Constitution vests in him sweeping powers and duties. Accounting for that reality -- and ensuring that the President may exercise those powers forcefully, as the Framers anticipated he would—does not place him above the law; it preserves the basic structure of the Constitution from which that law derives."

-ABC News' Alexandra Hutzler

 
Jul 1, 3:59 PM

SEAL Team 6 hypothetical assassination referenced in dissent

In their dissents, both justices Sotomayor and Jackson addressed the question of whether a president would have immunity from criminal prosecution for acts of murder -- including ordering the assassination of a political rival.

In their dissents, both Sotomayor and Jackson addressed the question of whether a president would have immunity from criminal prosecution for acts of murder -- including ordering the assassination of a political rival.

When the president "uses his official powers in any way, under the majority's reasoning, he now will be insulated from criminal prosecution," Sotomayor said in her dissent. "Orders the Navy's Seal Team 6 to assassinate a political rival? Immune."

MORE: Hypothetical SEAL Team 6 political assassination resurfaces in Supreme Court presidential immunity dissent

ABC News Supreme Court contributor Kate Shaw said on ABC News Live Monday that she agreed with the dissenting opinion that ordering the hypothetical assassination could be considered immune from criminal prosecution.

"In terms of the application of this immunity to very extreme scenarios like ordering an assassination, I'm not sure the majority successfully explains why this rule would not shield that kind of conduct if it's engaged in an official capacity, even if it's wildly wrong and dangerous and destructive," she said. "If that conduct is done in official capacity, I think the dissent is right on this opinion's own logic. It would be immune, and that is a genuinely chilling implication of this case."

The SEAL Team 6 assassination hypothetical was raised during oral arguments on the case in April.

Sotomayor raised it first while questioning Trump attorney John Sauer. She pointed back to an earlier exchange Sauer had in a lower court proceeding.

"I'm going to give you a chance to say ... if you stay by it: If the president decides that his rival is a corrupt person and he orders the military, or orders someone, to assassinate him -- is that within his official acts for which he can get immunity?" she asked during oral arguments.

"It would depend on the hypothetical," Sauer answered. "We could see that could well be an official act."

-ABC News' Meredith Deliso and Alexandra Hutzler

 
Jul 1, 3:34 PM

White House spokesman reacts to SCOTUS ruling

Ian Sams, a spokesman for the White House Counsel’s Office, released a statement about the ruling stating, "As President Biden has said, nobody is above the law."

"That is a core American principle and how our system of justice works. We need leaders like President Biden who respect the justice system and don’t tear it down," Sams added.

-ABC News' Selina Wang

 
Jul 1, 6:16 PM

Election interference judge does not mention Supreme Court decision during hearing

U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan did not mention or make any remarks on Monday about the Supreme Court’s presidential immunity ruling during her first public hearing since the justices sent Trump’s Jan. 6 case back to her.

At one point during a status hearing for a Jan. 6 defendant, when Judge Chutkan was asked about a trial date, she said "my calendar is…" as she made a face and laughed.

-ABC News' Laura Romero

 
Jul 1, 1:32 PM

RNC, DNC chairs react to immunity ruling

The heads of the Republican National Committee and Democratic National Committee both released statements following the Supreme Court's immunity ruling.

RNC chair Michael Whatley said "today's ruling is a victory for the rule of law and a reminder that the Constitution outweighs the left's weaponization of the judicial system against President Trump and his allies."

DNC Chair Jamie Harrison, however, argued the "ruling only underscores the stakes of this election," in light of Trump's repeated threats against his opponents.

"The only thing standing between Donald Trump and his threats to our democracy is President Biden -- and the American people will stand once again on the side of democracy this November," he said.

 
Jul 1, 1:27 PM

Biden campaign vows to highlight Trump threat after SCOTUS decision

Shortly after the Supreme Court ruled Monday on Trump's immunity case, the Biden reelection campaign organized a group of surrogates on a press call to lambast the decision that makes the former president immune from federal prosecution for official actions he took while in office.

The group included Capitol police officer Harry Dunn, New York Rep. Dan Goldman and Texas Rep. Jasmine Crockett. The group criticized the Republican-majority Supreme Court for giving the former president "untethered political power," or freedom to act as a "dictator."

"I do think that it was extremely scary," said principal deputy campaign manager Quentin Fulks, who led the call. "So what happens if there's an election outcome [or] result that Trump doesn't like in a Senate race, or governor's race or House race?"

The campaign said that Biden would be out on the campaign trail to highlight the threat that Trump poses to democracy following this decision.

"The Supreme Court just handed Donald Trump three keys to absolute immunity as president of the United States and so we're going to continue to point out to voters," Fulks said. "When Trump says these things, now he will have the ability to do them if he is the president or reelected president of the United States, and we have to do everything in our power to stop."

Fulks diverted attention from a question about Biden's debate performance, saying the Supreme Court's decision was a "reality check" in the face of debate night.

"Now until November, we're going to continue taking this case directly to voters who are going to decide this election," he said.

-ABC News' Isabella Murray

 
Jul 1, 1:15 PM

Congressional Democrats, Republicans react to SCOTUS ruling

Several Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill spoke out about the Supreme Court's ruling on presidential immunity.

Many GOP members of Congress lauded the decision and said it was a victory for former President Donald Trump. Meanwhile, many Democrats on the Hill said it sets a dangerous precedent.

Speaker Mike Johnson said the decision marks "another defeat for President [Joe] Biden’s weaponized Department of Justice and Jack Smith."

"As President Trump has repeatedly said, the American people, not President Biden’s bureaucrats, will decide the November 5th election," Johnson said in a statement.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said in a statement that the immunity SCOTUS decision “sets a dangerous precedent for the future of our nation.”

“House Democrats will engage in aggressive oversight and legislative activity with respect to the Supreme Court to ensure that the extreme, far-right justices in the majority are brought into compliance with the Constitution,” he said.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a series of statements on X that the ruling was a "disgraceful decision by the MAGA SCOTUS."

"The very basis of our judicial system is that no one is above the law. Treason or incitement of an insurrection should not be considered a core constitutional power afforded to a president," he said.

Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., said on a post on X that the ruling "upholds the rule of law in our country and rebukes Democrats’ blatant attempts to weaponize our legal system against Donald Trump."

"Time and time again, Americans have watched the Biden administration do everything in its power to take down President Trump, but this partisan attack will not stand in America," she said.

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