I get why people are eager to find the silver lining here by going "well, can't Biden use this too?"
No. He can't. This is literally only useful to help a President get away with committing crimes. What crime do you think it would be helpful for Biden to commit right now?
People had some fun coming up with crimes Biden could commit to demonstrate the absurdity of the ruling, but it's all performative stuff; the ruling helps corrupt presidents, not law-abiding ones.
It's a problem. I can come up with crimes Biden could do, but either they're ineffectual (the student debt example), or they're monstrous (which I don't recommend), or they're like the only thing I suggested: eye-catching and makes a point, but ultimately does good so that it makes the wrong point.
This is of a piece with FedSoc pursuing the unitary executive so aggressively. Giving a liberal president unchecked power doesn’t change much; the progressive project requires a functional administrative state. But it vastly speeds up the right wing project of dismantling the federal government.
I think he should have used the Insurrection Act at the start of the insurrection, because it's actually an insurrection and that's what those powers are for. But a lot of people said he should not do that, because he could get into legal trouble. Well I say now it's problem solved!
There was no risk of a Democratic president using it, because Biden just isn't a lawless thug like Trump and after Trump is done, there will never be a Democratic president again.
He should declare Trump ineligible to serve due to the 14th Amendment. His “official act” would be preventing him from taking office if he wins the election by any means necessary.
Assassination springs to mind. Declaring martial law also springs to mind - and then arresting all of Congress for a start. Violating the Posse Comitatus Act is a crime, but he can do it now. He can write his own budget, regardless of what Congress wants.
Ordering the arrest and indefinite detention of Trump and all 6 SC justices who said "It's OK if the President commits crimes."
It would 100% be a crime, but the SC has given him permission. Let them, and Trump, be the first and only victims of their policies.
And given how vague they left the core/official/unofficial standard, no reason to think this court wouldn’t just say “oops, that crime Biden committed was unofficial.”
The alphabet agencies files on members of the GQP, unredacted, with photos and videos.
Nothing brings a nation together like evidence these holier than thou people all were on Epstiens island.
My mind immediately went to Convincing the mint to print that trillion dollar coin, then stealing it in a mission impossible style way. It would show Biden as weirdly spritely and however briefly piss off musk that someone beat him to the 1T mark.
It wouldn't help. But it's where my mind went.
Helpful or likely to happen? Because directing the NSA to commit a bunch of 4th Amendment violations via cybercrime and dumping a lot of people's private emails and text messages into the public view might be helpful.
Mnh.
Does this ruling permit acts which are unconstitutional but within the scope of performing official duties? My frothy little brain demands to know this, so I can understand better how to worry.
And, does this ruling not permit Biden to color outside traditional lines?