Future Retirement Success
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Investing
  • Stocks
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Investing
  • Stocks

Future Retirement Success

Investing

Debating the Trump Prosecutions

by November 24, 2023
November 24, 2023
Debating the Trump Prosecutions

Walter Olson

The multiple prosecutions of former President Donald Trump have occasioned a torrent of comment but relatively few debates calmly airing arguments from both sides.

I’m happy to report that I participated in one such debate on October 19 at the University of Maryland in College Park, sponsored by the school’s Federalist Society chapter. Taking the other side, more critical of the prosecutions than I, was attorney Gene Hamilton, currently vice president and general counsel of America First Legal and formerly an official in the Department of Justice under Trump. Prof. Michael Spivey of the government department moderated with great skill, and an overflow crowd of 100 or so students attended, with thoughtful questions and a high civility level on all sides.

By agreement we discussed only the federal prosecutions of Trump, that is to say, the ones pursued by special counsel Jack Smith, and thus did not address the Georgia and New York state‐ proceedings. In my comments, I advanced some themes I’ve sounded in this space, such as that the presumption against indicting former presidents is a sound one but can be overcome, that the charges against Trump over his attempt to overturn the 2020 election do not somehow amount to criminalizing speech or advocacy, and that while laws such as conspiracy to defraud the United States and conspiracy against protected rights may sound open‐​ended, Smith’s team can point to recent precedent applying the laws in question to plausibly similar conduct. (For the current state of play on some of those questions, see prosecutors’ recent filing rebutting Trump’s attempt to get the case thrown out.)

Most of our time, however, wound up being spent on the Mar‐​a‐​Lago documents case. Hamilton’s firm has been seeking to develop the theory that the Presidential Records Act of 1978 is unconstitutional as an invasion of core presidential powers. (Among other provisions, the Nixon‐​era law requires presidents to turn over papers to the National Archives on leaving office, whether those papers were created by themselves or others.)

It is true that the Supreme Court has not squarely addressed this question, and also true that separation‐​of‐​powers analysis based on ideas of core presidential power has made some headway with commentators and judges of late. And while Trump’s own statements about the PRA have been confused at best, there is nothing wrong with lawyers’ developing a better defense of his interests than he has done himself.

I myself nonetheless expressed doubt that the high court will see fit to strike down most or all of the PRA. More fundamentally, I said, even if it did, such a ruling would not rescue Trump from criminal liability under either the national security or the obstruction‐​of‐​justice branches of the charges. Hamilton took the view that public support for the prosecution would be undercut were it established that the National Archivist had not been substantially justified in the document demands that led after several rounds of dispute to the obstruction charges.

I’m glad that the Federalist Society is offering a venue for these important debates, which are of keen interest and relevance to its membership and to all of us.

0
FacebookTwitterGoogle +Pinterest
previous post
How RRG Helps To Find Two Pair Trading Opportunities
next post
Team Biden’s war on cigarettes will only end in tears

You may also like

Is Freedom Falling? Take a Closer Look in...

April 4, 2024

A Return to US Casualty Aversion: The 9/11...

April 22, 2024

12 Graphs on Why Maduro Could Only “Win”...

July 30, 2024

When Does Speech Threaten Officials? From Washington, a...

February 21, 2025

It’s Time to Defund the OECD

May 9, 2024

The “Zombification” of Qualified Immunity?

May 15, 2024

101 Late Fees Charged by the Government

May 17, 2024

Trump, Harris, and All the Wrong Ways to...

September 11, 2024

On the Expansion of Executive Power: Addendum

May 20, 2025

Join Us in Person or Online, Sept. 7...

September 5, 2023

    Get free access to all of the retirement secrets and income strategies from our experts! or Join The Exclusive Subscription Today And Get the Premium Articles Acess for Free

    By opting in you agree to receive emails from us and our affiliates. Your information is secure and your privacy is protected.

    Recent Posts

    • Trump ally stands firm against ‘big, beautiful bill’ despite pressure: ‘It’ll completely backfire’

      June 8, 2025
    • Rubio condemns assassination attempt on Colombian presidential candidate Miguel Uribe

      June 8, 2025
    • Obama WH physician says Biden doc should have performed cognitive test

      June 8, 2025
    • Trump warns of ‘serious consequences’ if Elon Musk funds Democrats

      June 7, 2025
    • Musk jokes about reconsidering stance on Big Beautiful Bill after Schiff’s praise

      June 7, 2025
    • Musk deletes explosive posts about Trump and Epstein files

      June 7, 2025

    Categories

    • Business (8,152)
    • Investing (2,019)
    • Politics (15,571)
    • Stocks (3,136)
    • About us
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms & Conditions

    Disclaimer: futureretirementsuccess.com, its managers, its employees, and assigns (collectively “The Company”) do not make any guarantee or warranty about what is advertised above. Information provided by this website is for research purposes only and should not be considered as personalized financial advice. The Company is not affiliated with, nor does it receive compensation from, any specific security. The Company is not registered or licensed by any governing body in any jurisdiction to give investing advice or provide investment recommendation. Any investments recommended here should be taken into consideration only after consulting with your investment advisor and after reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the company.

    Copyright © 2025 futureretirementsuccess.com | All Rights Reserved