Over the last week, Trump has spoken what he believes his rights as a president are. On June 4th, Trump stated, “I have the absolute right to PARDON myself.” Pardoning powers have always been controversial because the constitution is quite vague on the topic. Based on Quinta Jurecic from Lawfareblog, the pardoning powers of the president on his or her self are a gray area. No president has tried to pardon themselves before (although Nixon came close to trying), so it would set a precedent for the rest of the nation. Interestingly, both articles presented information from Alexander Hamilton when he first pushed for the pardoning power. Hamilton originally created the power as a signal of mercy within the government and mercy from the criminal law system. …show more content…
In the Fox News article, the author states that even if Trump tried to pardon himself, it is possible he would be held accountable for high crimes by Congress and therefore tried for impeachment. This issue relates back to the executive branches power and the linkage institutions connecting it to the people. It showcases the executive power by Trump stating what he believes he can do based on his status. Also, it shows how the constitutional power given to the president can be understood in different ways. The media outlets’ differing their take on the situation reveal the way linkage institutions connect to their viewers as well as the government. Due to the political climate and the legality, a result will not come
The American Civil War not only proved to be the country’s deadliest war but also precipitated one of the greatest constitutional crises in the history of the United States. President Lincoln is revered by many Americans today as a man of great moral principle who was responsible for both preventing the Union’s dissolution as well as helping to trigger the movement to abolish slavery. In retrospect, modern historians find it difficult to question the legitimacy of Lincoln’s actions as President. A more precise review of President Lincoln’s actions during the Civil War, however, reveals that many, if not the majority, of his actions were far from legitimate on constitutional and legal grounds. Moreover, his true political motives reveal his
To quell the ambition, human nature of the Legislative Branch, the president has the power of the veto. This aspect that the president can shoot down any legislation that has passed, is a tremendous embodiment of how to president, the executive branch, checks the legislative branches “ambition.” This struggle of interest between two of the three branches, keeps the human nature in check. Moreover, the election of the president, judiciary, and legislative representatives, is just another balance of power between the three branches. Madison talks about how the three branches are to be as separate as possible. By dividing them up by their interests, ambition or human nature, they keep one another from running roughshod over other peoples’ liberties and
United States of America is a country that has justice and a large legal system. People, who are the citizens of the U.S., are not able to be above the law no matter how successful they are. The Preamble states that the government is to “ secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America” (U.S. Constitution 1) The Preamble represents Americans' desire to have a perfect union for themselves under the control of the law. Unfortunately, there are some people that do not conform to the law. For example, in 1972, President Nixon had been involved in the Watergate Scandal. This case is known as United States v. Nixon. President Nixon resigned his job after the Supreme Court made their judgment. This case proves that the equality of American judicial system is fair for everyone. The case of United States v. Nixon is so important because it proves that every U.S. citizens is equal before the law, and nobody is above the law, including the U.S. president.
...y decide to do this, the president could be tried for wrongdoing. If a majority of the House of Representatives vote to impeach, then a trial will be held and a decision will be made based on existing evidence. As stated before, each branch is supposed to equal, but their duties raise them to different standards than the others. If we did not have these guidelines for each branch and our government would not be complete without all three of these branches working together successfully, but the Legislative branch should always be viewed as the most powerful.
The Watergate Crisis concludes that the profoundly memorable and intensely appalling atrocity, Watergate, “tested our system and ourselves.” Genovese does not merely tell of the events of Watergate, he goes on to dissect the effects of the incident. In the preface, the author tidily summarizes the influence of this crisis by stating that “time has not altered the sting of Watergate. It remains a profoundly sad and unnecessary scar on the political landscape.” This book delves into how presidential corruption is the worst possible offense because it results in the deep-seated distrust of the government.
The Constitution lays out power sharing amongst the President and Congress. However the Constitution is not always clearly defined which leaves questions to how the laws should be interpreted and decisions implemented. There are three major models of presidenti...
Impeachment is “ a criminal proceeding instituted against a public official by a legislative body.” (Impeachment). This does not mean automatic removal from office, which is a common misconception. the article goes on to explain how in the United States, the reason impeachment is so rare at the presidential level is because it is quite a long process and keep the Congress occupied for months; due to this impeachment in only employed in the gravest of circumstances. Furthermore, it is not just presidents or federal officials who can be impeached, as 49 states (all but Oregon) have an impeachment procedure in place. Impeachment is considered to be an important part of the checks and balances that make the US government unique, however due to the complicated and time consuming process it is.
Is the death penalty fair? Is it humane? Does it deter crime? The answers to these questions vary depending on who answers them. The issue of capital punishment raises many debates. These same questions troubled Americans just as much in the day of the Salem witch trials as now in the say of Timothy McVeigh. During the time of the Salem witchcraft trials they had the same problem as present society faces. Twenty innocent people had been sentenced to death. It was too late to reverse the decision and the jurors admitted to their mistake. The execution of innocent people is still a major concern for American citizens today.
Another issue in the American presidency is the power to pardon. The president’s pardon power comes from Article II, section 2 of the Constitution which gives the president the power “to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment” (Love 2007). However, there are restrictions to this power as the president can only pardon federal crimes and not state ones. Pardons are sought out through the Office of the Pardon Attorney, which helps the president by reviewing and investigating the requested pardon before it is sent to the White House. So far, Joe Arpaio is the only person who has been pardoned by President Donald Trump, but there are several hundred other people who also requested pardons.
Decriminalization is defined as: elimination of criminal penalties or removal of legal restrictions against. It is a topic in relation to drugs and Canada has still not come to a conclusion on the issue. As stated in the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) report from 2010, Canada is one of the world’s primary source countries for illicitly manufactured synthetic drugs, particularly MDMA (“ecstasy”). Certain individuals argue that if all drugs are legalized, our society will be safer and drugs will be clean which will reduce the number of overdoses and deaths due to laced drugs being consumed. In the article The Surprising Truth about Heroin and Addiction by Jacob Sullum, it is stated that “… drugs such as nicotine and cocaine [are] not truly addictive; they [are] merely habituating”. The question should not be “Should Canada Legalize all Drugs?” it should be “Which Drugs Should Canada Legalize?”
When describing Trump’s ability to effectively run the country, Blow highlights his “unrelenting assault” on “morality”, “ethics”, “truth”, “norms” and “decorum” in paragraph 11. By accusing Trump of unrelentingly assaulting cornerstones of the nation, Blow further portrays him as an unfit president, whose presence in office degrades the country. Describing the “assault” as “unrelenting”, Blow reasons that as long as Trump is in office, the standards of the nation will continue to be attacked and defiled; in other words, this degradation cannot be stopped by merely reasoning with the president but will dissipate once he is removed from office. By listing specific cornerstones that are affected by Trump’s presidency, Blow further urges readers
To Neustadt, “presidential power is the power to persuade” (Nuestadt, 11). Persuasion and bargaining are the means that presidents use to influence policy. Presidents need to “bargain” to influence both Congress and the executive branch. Neustadt argues that presidents cannot lead directly.
The old proverb “the Pen is mightier than the sword” (Edward Bulwer-Lytton, Richelieu; Or the Conspiracy) still holds significance in protecting of public rights. Words such as freedom, and liberty engendered the idea for democracy. Such words formed into sentences and paragraphs enlightened the public to take action against tyranny and corruption. Freedom of the press is what ensured the general masses of their public rights. The exemplary case in which the freedom of the press played a role was the endeavors of Woodward and Bernstein to unravel the corrupted politics behind the Watergate Scandal. The movie All the President’s Men depicts the proceedings of the Watergate scandal, the scheme to attack the crux of democracy: “ the open election”. Also how the two journalists of the Washington Post progressed to unveil the relationship between the Watergate Burglary and the White House. On one hand, the movie represents the role of the media in its obligation to convey the truth to the masses. On the other hand, the movie reflects political corruption and conspiracy. The accomplishment of Woodward and Bernstein presents the importance of the interaction between the media, the government, and the general masses of society. The role of the media is not only to intervene between the State and the public, but also to take account of public ideas and to apply those ideas to new policies. Also, the media acts as a safeguard to prevent the corruption of the State. Thus, the Watergate scandal signifies the significance of the media as an intermediary between the government and the public mass.
Few issues have been as hotly argued and controversial as the death penalty, with its many conflicting moral, social and legal implications. Compelling arguments exist in favor of the final punishment, and equally strong arguments exist to end its practice. Furthermore, considering its conflicting history, on the grand scale of the whole world, and in just America, it is unlikely that this issue will be resolved any time soon. In the United States specifically, the issue has great significance to the bill of rights and the 8th amendment, which prevents cruel and unusual punishment. The death sentence, due to the intense debate on its morality and constitutionality, as well as the many conflicting decisions made about it until this day, still is and will likely remain a very controversial issue in the United States.
United States locks up more people, per capita, than any other nation. Bail system has failed to keep people arrested out jail and the increasing rate of people in jail is alarming. Many District Attorney forment defendant to take a plea deal, instead of waiting for a trial (Buettner). Bail reform has help put fewer people in jail, but has lead to many lost jobs for people who works at the jail. Bail system is a profit motive for the bail industry.