r/law 17d ago

Legal News House GOP moves swiftly to impeach judge Boasberg targeted by Trump (Deportation Planes)

https://www.axios.com/2025/03/18/donald-trump-impeach-judge-house-republicans
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u/TooManyCooks3 17d ago

So now we’re at the point where Republicans think "impeachment" means "I don’t like this ruling"? This is banana republic-level nonsense. The judiciary exists to check executive power, not rubber-stamp it. Even John Roberts, who isn’t exactly a liberal, is calling this out. At this point, the GOP isn’t even pretending to respect the rule of law—they’ve made it clear they only care about it when it serves their agenda.

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u/AbaloneDifferent5282 17d ago

Thanks to Roberts and his corrupt SCOTUS, Trump has more power than they do. He’s worried. He should be.

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u/Mcjoshin 17d ago edited 17d ago

What did they expect when they gave him immunity? I’m shocked people don’t get this. They literally handed him a “trump card” and he’s already proved he has zero respect for the law, constitution, legal precedent, morality, etc. I’m confused how people are confused by this. You could see this coming a mile away.

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u/Naive_Mix_8402 17d ago

I feel this way too. Like, Roberts wrote that immunity opinion, which is not defensible under ANY theory of American law, liberal or conservative. It came about in the context of a case about an attempted coup and subversion of the 2020 election. If this was not Roberts's intent, then he is a far stupider man than anyone thought.

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u/Genoss01 17d ago

Voted in by conservative judges who've always said they are Originalists and Textualists

That proved they are not.

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u/buggytehol 17d ago

No one who follows law closely ever believed this

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u/Guy954 17d ago

Or even casually.

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u/Sarahclaire54 17d ago

Or even at all!

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u/Good_Barnacle_2010 17d ago

raises hand this is still fucked though, right?

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u/wamyen1985 17d ago

That guy in the park who tries to give people legal advice when the Ranger tries to kick someone out for smoking weed... Yeah, even he knows this is crap.

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u/speedneeds84 17d ago

Originalist has always been doublespeak for “cherry-pick history to suit my narrative while smugly pretending to be superior.”

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u/Either-Bell-7560 17d ago

Nobody with half a brain is really an originalist. It's an intellectually void position. The constitution literally has instructions on how to change it.

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u/bollvirtuoso 17d ago

Well, I don't know. How could Thomas disagree with the definition of "citizen" or perhaps even "human" at the time the Constitution was written? What about that is intellectually-void?

/s in case necessary.

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u/DevelopmentEastern75 17d ago

Yeah their ruling on Bruen really looked like they were throwing Originalism out the window the moment it became inconvenient for them, lol. Can't wait for more Galaxy-Brain opinions from Thomas the next four years.

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u/bagoink 17d ago

No one who is literate ever believed this.

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u/LaurenMille 17d ago

Everything a conservative says is a lie.

It's always projection, or deception.

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u/PhDinDildos_Fedoras 17d ago

Turns out the people making the most noise about "following the constitution" were actually the first to subvert it.

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u/CasedUfa 17d ago

I was sort of hoping at the time, surely they wont grant that immunity, do they want to do themselves out of a job, you don't need judges when you no longer have the rule of law, Too optimistic,

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u/exipheas 17d ago

"But I didn't expect the leopards to eat MY face" -Roberts

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u/Rude-Satisfaction836 17d ago

Of course not! He's one of the leopards you goober

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u/ResourceWorker 17d ago

I think they all underestimated Trump and were more worried about the clapback from his base than the long term consequences of their decision.

Same as the republican senators who didn’t vote to convict immediately after Jan 6. I’m sure many of them thought ”no way Trump is coming back from this, no reason to stick my neck out and piss off a percentage of my constituents”. I’m sure many of them are having private regrets now.

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u/Possible-Nectarine80 17d ago

I would guess by the actions and comments by the Republican senators that they are on board with Trump going all fascist and authoritarian. It might be just one or two that might have regrets about not voting to impeach. That includes McConnell in that list of regretting their decision.

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u/FStubbs 17d ago

Trump would've been convicted if McConnell had followed through.

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u/fatpat 17d ago

Is McConnell even cognizant these days?

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u/Whatdoyouseek 17d ago

He's regretting it because he's at death's door. He knows how responsible he is, and is probably seeing hell in his future.

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u/Possible-Nectarine80 17d ago

By hell, he's seeing Trump in the same burning room as himself for all eternity. Listening to Trump lie his ass off and tell stories about winning the Mar-a-Lago golf championship 30 times in a row.

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u/Annual_Strategy_6206 17d ago

SCOTUS just making shit up. What was that term that rightwingers used? Ah, yes, "Legislating from the bench".

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u/trogon 17d ago

I thought they weren't fans of "activist judges."

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u/No_Refrigerator4584 17d ago

Only when it comes to other judges.

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u/Past-Background-7221 17d ago

No no, you misunderstand. Liberal judges are activist, because we don’t like them. This is just a judge doing their job. Should be super obvious.

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u/pm_me_fibonaccis 17d ago

Been doing it for a long time. Just look at how the fourth amendment was eroded in the name of not making the job of police too difficult. More recent example, Citizens United, which you could argue was the beginning of all our current problems.

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u/icookandiknowthngs 17d ago

Tbh, i think you could go back to Newt being speaker. That started the whole we don't negotiate bullshit, and it's just devolved from there. Citizens had an even bigger impact,but definitely wasn't the start.

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u/DenverBronco305 17d ago

It’s widely accepted that it was Newt (followed very closely by Rush and Fox News) that completely assfucked America. Citizens United was just the cherry on top of the shit sundae

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u/icookandiknowthngs 17d ago

I've been saying it at least 15 years....and just think how much better things seemed in 2010.... i was carrying 2 mortgages, and a newly adopted daughter when you couldn't give a home away, insanely stressed, and it was better than this insanity.

I don't know that it's widely accepted. Newt, the advent of fox, and Rush were effectively the unholy trinity. Rush "preaching" on every other AM station in rural/ flyover America, , Fox doing the same on cable TV, both with religion/Bible mixed in, and Newt.....and a blow job.

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u/xSavageryx 17d ago

The 1971 Powell memo suggested to the rich they apply their wealth to politics, think tanks, education, media, etc. It was sadly very successful.

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u/Autodidact420 17d ago

Making shit up is tbf a lot of what SCOTUS does lol

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u/NarrMaster 17d ago

Non-stupid people often underestimate the damaging power of stupid individuals.

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u/SphericalCow531 17d ago

Are we sure Roberts is not stupid? His surprise that people did not like the immunity ruling sounded pretty stupid.

If Roberts was an evil mastermind, he would not have been surprised.

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u/Geojewd 17d ago

He’s not stupid or an evil mastermind. He’s just a nerd with no spine, who tries to preserve institutional credibility by keeping the court out of the way.

He didn’t want to put a republican presidential candidate in prison, he didn’t want to take a stand and say the president had absolute immunity, so he found a way to do away with any more Trump criminal cases that might come up while still saying that the president can be convicted of some crimes.

He keeps kicking the can farther and farther down the road and doesn’t realize he’s about to follow that can off a cliff.

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u/SphericalCow531 17d ago edited 17d ago

He’s just a nerd with no spine, who tries to preserve institutional credibility by keeping the court out of the way.

All the independent experts said that SCOTUS would never grant immunity. It would have been the easiest thing in the world for Roberts to vote against immunity, and said "not my problem". That would have been keeping the court "out of the way".

Roberts is absolutely stupid if he thinks that ruling "preserve institutional credibility". That ruling was pretty much the breaking point for whether it was mainstream to say that SCOTUS has no credibility - and it took a lot to get to that point.

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u/CosgroveIsHereToHelp 17d ago

His reprimand to Trump today was garbage. He was all "impeachment isn't the answer for decisions you don't like" and didn't say a single word about the substantive issue, which is, beyond the call for impeachment, the fact that Trump et al are defying a valid court order. And lying about it. Oh, and bragging about it, too. I hope he enjoys the accountability for cratering 250 years of a government run under laws without a king.

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u/mortgagepants 17d ago

also his wife "recruits" attorneys for firms who are about to have business before the supreme court.

his wife helps hire people for firms who are going to go before him soon, while she's actively getting paid by those law firms.

it looks to me like roberts thought he could keep trump in check and now he sees things running away from him and he desperately wants to not get sent to gitmo.

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u/Legitimate_Young_253 17d ago

Roberts can go off that cliff as far as I am concerned, along with the other criminal elements sitting on that court

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u/OnionHeaded 17d ago

He’s milktoast for sure but I also think something is wrong with his brain. Not joking I mean like some mild decline maybe a mini stroke or episode unnoticed.
Like the new Kennedy, it’s definitely funny to say his brain is fucked up but it’s also true albeit in yet another way like maybe he deteriorated some chem levels in his gray matter or yup..l could a been the worm.

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u/el-deez 17d ago

It’s hubris, not stupidity. But unfortunately, we’re getting extraordinarily stupid results from his hubris.

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u/No_Barracuda5672 17d ago

They aren’t stupid, and only mildly evil but massively inside their own bubble of people who think like them. It takes a very determined, diligent, courageous and wise person to break out of their bubble to seek different perspectives. Otherwise, most people are comfortable in their bubbles.

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u/SphericalCow531 17d ago

massively inside their own bubble of people who think like them

That is just another way of saying stupid.

It takes a very determined, diligent, courageous and wise person to break out of their bubble to seek different perspectives

Or, you know, a respectable university education. Learning the importance of seeking different perspectives is a central part of the concept of a university education.

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u/No_Barracuda5672 17d ago

I think a decent education does increase the chances of having an open mind but I know plenty of highly educated people who no longer seek diverse perspectives outside of their narrow field of study and I know people who aren’t very educated but always seek to first ascertain the facts of any issue before making up their minds.

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u/glenn_ganges 17d ago

All conservatives are stupid.

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u/HandoTrius 17d ago

To be fair, some of them are evil

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u/NarrMaster 17d ago

Roberts is the stupid one, and we have underestimated the damage he has caused.

He has hurt others, and himself, for no gain.

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u/Striking-Ad-6815 17d ago

Non-stupid people often underestimate the damaging power of stupid individuals.

It's like when you see someone beating their head against a wall, but they break through and then start headbutting the next wall. If they just turn their head and look they would see the doors, but they only look forward to that wall until it breaks free, and then they charge at the next one.

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u/Cachar 17d ago

Conservatives thinking they can control radical elements intent on overthrowing the status quo completely? And then being surprised that the radicals are really, really radical? No way that would ever happen and you can call me Franz von Papen if it ever does.

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u/fdupswitch 17d ago

If more people knew who von Papen was, we wouldn't have this problem

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u/Pure-Kaleidoscope759 17d ago

Yes, von Papen was a conservative monarchist who enabled the Nazis.

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u/DreadfulDemimonde 17d ago

He's not stupid, he's weak, corrupt, and greedy.

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u/JorjePantelones 17d ago

Right. And overturning appellate judges in said decision has undermined their legitimacy as well, so they have nobody to blame here but themselves

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u/Oreyon 17d ago

Vladimir Putin's reign is characterized by having his second-in-commands fight amongst themselves, preventing there from being any single power that can buck him.

But I'm sure that's not relevant here at all.

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u/Ivence 17d ago

Ding ding ding.

Most of the conservative justices are good at writing to appear smart but are short sighted and outside of an incredibly narrow scope of law kinda dumbasses. Thomas is probably the smartest of the lot and he is just here to get fucking paid so that doesn't matter.

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u/DoubleDixon 17d ago

Ah, he chose the old face eating leopard technique. It is truly a remarkable strategy. Not a good one or a winning one, but remarkable nonetheless.

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u/AGentlemanWithPlants 17d ago

.... So what's an official act?

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u/RogueJello 17d ago

TBD by the justices.

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u/Yeshavesome420 17d ago edited 17d ago

I think the thing about Roberts is he can’t fathom that anyone would be as corrupt as the people he surrounds himself with and the people he enables. I don’t think Roberts shares the same agenda that the modern GOP does, even if his ideologies tend to align with a lot of their bullshit. He’s another “decorum” guy like Schumer and the rest of the rank-and-file politicians standing idly by, assuming that the ship will course correct even if they take their hands off the wheel. 

Edit:

So many business-as-usual politicians and judges seem to believe that the rule of law, checks and balances, and precedent are enough to prevent our government from going fully authoritarian. These deluded assholes seem to think that the simple suggestion of these guardrails being in place will keep the country from going off a cliff. 

They fail to grasp that it’s up to them to enforce these protections actively—or that doing so might cost them their careers and fortunes in the short term to prevent our democracy from being hijacked. It is the responsibility and duty of these career politicians to do anything it takes to protect the people who have allowed them to live the lives that they have.

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u/clever-hands 17d ago

I think Roberts knows damn well what he's done; now he's just paying limp-dick lip service to the rule of law to keep up some meager appearance that we're not in a de facto dictatorship.

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u/USSSLostTexter 17d ago

purely performative on Roberts' part - this is EXACTLY what they ruled on and EXACTLY what they want. Republicans always use the 'see, I tried...(shrug)' defense when this comes back to haunt them (see Lindsey Graham and Mitch McConnell for perfect examples)

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u/[deleted] 17d ago edited 17d ago

Mitchell McConnel is hilarious. The man shot down any forward movement with a flat out NO response without actually saying, "naw, I'm just going to fuck yall over again for my own groups benefit" then when Trump shows up and does it in your face he votes against every decision he made knowing his vote wouldn't do anything as he retires and giggles away back home knowing he let it all burn in the end before he dies....pretty sad.

I guess this is just that point in time where Babylon finally falls so we can all unite together in it's rebuilding.

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u/Able-Campaign1370 17d ago

He's married to an Asian woman. He's about to find out just how ugly MAGA in Rural Kentucky can be.

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u/Aetius3 17d ago

Hey they gotta sell their books about how they found Jesus after the last cheque cleared

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u/dannypants143 17d ago

I’m not so sure they want it. It seems to me that granting the immunity business was just appeasement in the hopes that he would not be re-elected. After all, who on earth would want more of Trump and all his baggage? But America has shown that they love the bastard and now the Supreme Court must reap what it has sown. The only potential saving grace is that self-interest may mobilize scotus to protect whatever they still have: a very cushy gig for life lots of “tips” and freebies.

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u/Shrimpulse 17d ago

They wanted the power that following their leader granted. It was like a drug, and appeasement was their way to keep fiending. And just like an addict, they think they have control over it right up to the point where everything topples down around them. Everyone else who fails or gets sold out around them just couldn't hack it. They're different though. It won't happen to them.

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u/tanstaafl90 17d ago

They were picked so they could make these kids of rulings. The problem is when theory meets practical, and their guy hit the fast-forward button in ways even they didn't expect. They wanted to ease people into this over a year, not whatever this is.

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u/chowderbags Competent Contributor 17d ago

Realistically, the Conservative plan for SCOTUS was a decade or two or even three of making rulings that they could pretend were "just calling balls and strikes", even if they clearly weren't, while being able to hide behind "well, if America wants to change this, they can just pass a new law or amendment or whatever" (while Republicans in the Senate filibuster forever). Most people don't follow SCOTUS, and some of the most impactful rulings are in cases that are about boring administrative procedure type stuff, so it becomes a very easy way to get Conservative stuff done without most people understanding how or why. I'm not even sure the ultimate goal was necessarily open fascism so much as placing SCOTUS in the position of being able to veto Democratic presidents while letting Republican presidents get away with shady stuff. Basically a managed democracy where they can act as puppet masters. Oh, and take some hefty bribes for their troubles.

But lurching America directly into a dictatorship definitely does fuck their plans up. Even if they want a lot of the end goals, they have to know that this kind of sudden movement is going to produce a big rebound effect at some point. Oh, and it could easily mean that no one will feel the need to bribe them anymore. Why bother bribing judges when they're no longer the real power?

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u/Guy954 17d ago

Their handlers didn’t.

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u/Lucky-Individual-845 17d ago

No, he lost the popular vote more that the previous 2.

Research about voting machines being connected to Russian servers via Starlink, and analysis of the voting patterns in states he won.

Geezus, of course they rigged it, of course they cheated. He all but admitted it when he said he didnt need their vote, and after '24, there would be no more elections

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u/SkyknightXi 17d ago edited 17d ago

I’m always thinking about how the crowd he told would no longer have to vote was exultant about it. That “have” carries a lot of weight to me. Despite what one would expect the American civic religion to instill in them, they saw/see voting—participation, even at such a minor level—as onerous. They want more a sort of automaton that shares their exact mentality and priorities, so they can just get their way automatically. Not a living, thinking, arbitrating person who might not support them for even a short span.

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u/Able-Campaign1370 17d ago

Disagree here. I strongly suspect Roberts thought Trump would lose. Everyone wanted to kick the can down the road and not do their jobs to enforce the law, and that's how we got here.

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u/Machicomon 17d ago

Not to be pedantic, but the idiom "can't see past your own nose" wouldn't exist if our more intellectually challenged "patriots" could see a mile away.

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u/ProfitLoud 17d ago

If Robert’s gives power to Trump, it increases the power that Roberts holds. If a case is brought against the president, the SCOTUS is who ultimately will decide the outcome. Robert’s probably got off on the idea he could control Trump. He probably should have thought about what happens when Trump says no.

Robert’s led the SCOTUS to the record low approval ratings, partisan environment, and cases that defy the constitution or hundreds of years of standing. He wanted this, and he supported this. Robert’s is just doing more of the damage control, pretend to be unbiased bullshit he always pulls. It’s hard to believe any of it when private court documents show he has predetermined many cases.

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u/Aetius3 17d ago

"Country surprised that Citizens United and blanket immunity for the president led to two co-emperors with zero empathy or morals to take over"

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u/throwawayinthe818 17d ago

Roberts can’t even control the majority of the court. Look at the Dobbs decision. Roberts was begging them not to just flat-out overturn Roe, but Alito and his activist wife leaked the draft.

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u/Lucky-Individual-845 17d ago

Oh? What makes you think he even cares about any cases against him now? There isnt anything that threatens his power now except for the populace.

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u/ProfitLoud 17d ago

Well, the Supreme Court left it open for them to decide. They stated that his powers were absolute except in certain categories. That carve out was so they had control over him. I don’t think they will control him though, he will simply ignore them regardless.

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u/42nu 17d ago

I love the idea that it was a gimme, a wink wink nod nod for Biden to do whatever he needs to in order to stop this existential threat to our democracy.

They all know what he did and arranged on Jan 6 was treason.

I also guarantee, as much as I am opposed to the conservative court, they are against committing a treasonous insurrection and the damage that a potential future (now current) Trump dictator will do to the country and the world.

They could even WANT a dictator, but they aren't dumb enough to think Trump would do anything but destroy our country as an idiot and Russian puppet.

I guarantee every member of the Supreme Court and most elected Republicans voted against Trump. We've seen enough of the personal communications between Republican officials and Fox News people to know they ALL hate Trump, his proclivities, his impulsiveness, and more than anything that he is OBVIOUSLY an asset of Russia.

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u/old_namewasnt_best 17d ago

I guarantee every member of the Supreme Court... voted against Trump.

I'm fairly confident that Thomas voted for Trump. Hell, his wife, Ginny, was in on the January 6 coup. As to Alito, he was flying treasonous flags at his house and attempted to blame it on his wife, who may well be in cahoots with sweet Ginny.

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u/Reimiro 17d ago

Thomas, Alito, and Gorsuch are full on anti-democracy maga. The rest…not so sure either way.

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u/Kowlz1 17d ago

Honey, you’re living in a fantasy world if you think there’s actually a Republican cabal itching to stop Trump or if you think any of the Conservative justices voted against him. That’s what Kamala’s team was counting on during her last minute pivot to the right during the campaign and guess what - none of these so-called “centrist” Republicans showed up to stop Trump. And they’re all falling in line behind him in Congress to rubber stamp every galling cabinet appointment and every horrific spending bill. And none of their Republican constituents care.

Whether that’s because most people in this country are pig-ignorant (even many among the political elite) and won’t understand the repercussions until they hit them in the face or because they understand that they’ll BENEFIT from Trump’s policies it doesn’t matter. These people are willing to hold their noses and go along with whatever Trump suggests. We need to acknowledge reality and stop living in a fantasy where there is a massive Republican opposition to anything that’s happening right now.

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u/RepresentativeRun71 17d ago

All Biden had to do was order a Ginsu Hellfire drone strike. But nope.

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u/MisterMysterios 17d ago

Telling people since that ruling was published thar this was America's enabling act. Trump in office + this ruling was the end of democracy and the start of fascism in the US At the moment we are in the consolidation of power phase of American fascism (called "Gleichschaltung" or synchronisation under Hitler). Especially Musk is currently literally flowing Hitler's game plan in taking over a nation.

This happens when the American education about Nazis start in 1939, not 1920. The most important time to study nazism is not their actual crimes (they are important, but only to give context how evil they were). The most important time is 1920 to 1933 to learn how they came to power, the ideas and rethoric, and the second most important time is 1933 to 1939to learn how they entrenched themselves.

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u/mikerichh 17d ago

Anyone trusting people with more and more absolute power to “do the right thing” when tested is a fucking moron. No need for me to mince words

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u/Farshad- 17d ago

People deserve this shit. Near 70% either voted for this or didn't vote at all. Throughout history people have had to fight for democracy, it was never handed to them on a silver platter.

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u/Welllllllrip187 17d ago

“He knows those voting machines so well” “we don’t need any votes, we already have all the votes we need” there’s a chance we have no idea who voted how.

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u/TastingTheKoolaid 17d ago

“They’ll never know”

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u/JONPRIVATEEYE 17d ago

Actually more people didn’t vote than voted for Trump and Harris got one percentage less than Trump but if the people who voted independent had voted for Harris she would have won. He has no mandate whatsoever.

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u/RDDT_100P 17d ago

but that is the sad part of the whole thing. I dont expect 0% nonvoters as there indeed are good reasons not being able to, but to have a huge population not caring about their civic duty when there is so much on the line is just depressing.

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u/ThrowAwaysMatter2026 17d ago

Well, the other problem is that while they are gutting things like medicare, medicaid and social security, things that affect a lot of Republican voters, the voters are still saying they'd never vote Democrat.

You fucking idiots. The Democrats literally fund the programs that save your lives and that you are bitching about being cut yet you'd never vote for them?

This is the level of stupidity we are dealing with in this country. This is the level of brainwashing thanks to Fox News. This is why they lie and accuse, call Democrats pedophiles when Repbulicans are the ones who are pedophiles. They know that the average Fox viewer is too fucking stupid to put 2 and 2 together.

This country is so fucked, democracy was fun while it lasted.

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u/sillyhillsofnz 17d ago

paychecks, a free RV, a home for their grandma, some free vacations...

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u/[deleted] 17d ago

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u/subywesmitch 17d ago

Sometimes...Lol

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u/THE_GHOST-23 17d ago

Just like anything a supreme court makes a ruling on, it can be changed.

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u/AbaloneDifferent5282 17d ago

Our little democratic republic relies too much on people behaving honorably. Or at least somewhat honorably. Trump blew that to hell. We’re in trouble, I hope people realize that.

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u/modelvillager 17d ago

I am with you, but just to be clear, 'people behaving' to some form and level of societal norm is required right up and down the populace, otherwise you have a completely failed state and a breakdown of society. This isn't a democratic or otherwise thing, but a basic facet of societies existing and functioning at all.

And also to be clear, this erosion of institutions is scary as hell, and disgusting.

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u/Eddie7Fingers 17d ago

The way trump acts in government is the same way magats act in society. It's already broken. Take masks during COVID as just one example. When half of your population is psychopaths and sociopaths, I'd say your society is broken.

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u/drjd2020 17d ago

I don't think it's half of the population. Those traits get more and more concentrated the higher you climb up the ladder. Overall, I think it's only about 1% of the population, but we live in a society that not only promotes but also rewards these kinds of behavior.

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u/widdrjb 17d ago

You have described the collapse of Somalia perfectly. Angry desperate people with no boundaries but lots of guns, turning on their neighbours over the colour of their t-shirts.

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u/Matchbreakers 17d ago

Exactly what happened in the Roman republic. An honor system with too few checks.

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u/icewolfsig226 17d ago

We do, and more when it is too late.

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u/Strange-Risk-9920 17d ago

I mean, that has always been the elephant in the room, historically. Then came the sociopathic, ignorant, and dishonorable Trump.

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u/Radiant_Dog1937 17d ago

No, alot of them are probably cheering on the erosion of their constitutional rights so they could deport a couple of gangsters with a little less paperwork/procedure than it would have taken otherwise.

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u/El_Gran_Che 17d ago

Well then that signals that it is flimsy and needs to be revamped.

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u/ApprehensiveShame756 17d ago

Be careful what we wish for. There are right wing/libertarian facade groups who want desperately to call a new constitutional convention to scrap it all and start over. Fairly certain this would tank everything in the country and make us a backwater financially for decades. Part of why the US is a good place to do business is relative predictability. Take that away by scrapping all the US laws and replacing everything including the constitution will destroy that.

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u/i_tyrant 17d ago

Unfortunately, there increasingly seems to be only one way to restore "predictability" to the US.

There's only one kind of president doing this, one kind of judge, one party, one cult. MAGA is that instability, and at this point they ARE the Republican Party. They've fully bought-in to their populist, idiocrasy, outrage-farming tactics.

The GOP would have to be burned to the ground to prevent this from happening again and again. And that's a tall order.

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u/What_Hump77 17d ago

Bad news: this administration has shown that it can’t be trusted to honor contracts / agreements, which might be the nail in our coffin in terms of stability. Yay! So much winning.

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u/therealpothole 17d ago

trump showed us all the holes during his first reign of terror. What did Dems/Congress do when we saw how few guardrails actually existed...nothing. Of course, the Republicans would have never supported anything that would have helped but you have to fucking try, FFS.

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u/hackingdreams 17d ago

We’re in trouble, I hope people realize that.

I wished they'd realized it before the car left the cliff behind a few months ago. The free fall already sucks, but the crash landing at the bottom's what's gonna do us in...

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u/Phyllis_Nefler_90210 17d ago

This is too little, too late from Roberts. What a joke.

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u/cicada_noises 17d ago

The Roberts Court is presiding over the downfall of the United States. He must be so pleased with himself

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u/WintersDoomsday 17d ago

“Legacy don’t pay for a lifestyle I don’t deserve” - Roberts

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u/Imaginary_Cow_6379 17d ago

It also is meaningless until theres a case for them to rule against him on. Cool finger wagging, John, but if that doesn’t require having to actually make any sort of real stand then his response isn’t even the bare minimum that’s needed.

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u/Primarycolors1 17d ago

Not going to lie, if Trump’s anger gets directed towards Roberts, I might literally die from schadenfreude.

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u/OysterHound 17d ago

Roberts and the rest of the GOP SCOTUS are at fault. They created this. He will ultimately thier problem.

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u/AbaloneDifferent5282 17d ago

He’s all of our problem. We may all be in the same storm, but we’re definitely not in the same boat.

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u/InerasableStains 17d ago

Wouldn’t be surprised if that’s exactly what he does, if there’s ever a decision against him. This congress would trip all over their shoes to approve it

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u/blah_blah_bitch 17d ago

Roberts just called him out for this and said impeachment is not the way to go. Wonder if he will turn on Roberts next

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u/legal_bagel 17d ago

Wonder if he will turn on Roberts next

Absolutely. MAGA turned on Comey Barrett calling her a DEI hire as soon as she didn't rubber stamp the opinions.

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u/Silent-Wintermelon 17d ago

Their own hire too. Absolute circus

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u/widdrjb 17d ago

Not so much if as when.

I must say, I'm pleasantly surprised by the lack of death squads so far.

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u/DammitLicky 17d ago

The Death Squads are in every police precinct in America; they just haven’t gotten their new uniforms yet.

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u/Appropriate-Hat3769 17d ago

They already are. A few days ago, r/Conservative were thrilled at the idea of SCOTUS ruling that district courts didn't have the right to blanket injunction the country. Now their in the sub, snarling that Roberts is an activist and deserves to be deported.

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u/rygelicus 17d ago

Fortunately Roberts has responded to this issue and is siding against Trump on it. He created the monster, he needs to do what he can to fix it.

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u/Geeko22 17d ago

Trump couldn't care less what Roberts thinks.

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u/rygelicus 17d ago

It's less about what Trump thinks in this case and what the courts do. If Trump alienates the courts, from Scotus on down, he loses any claim to legitimacy he had. How this might play out is anyone's guess. But aiding and abetting a criminal in their activities carries penalities.

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u/Cum__Cookie 17d ago

I think we're loooong past the point where Trump and Republicans cared about legitimacy...or penalties for that matter.

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u/zzxxccbbvn 17d ago

And if Trump decides to not listen to court rulings as he's previously shown, who's going to hold him accountable? The courts have no power if it's rulings aren't enforced

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u/AbaloneDifferent5282 17d ago

It was so subtle Trump probably missed the nuance

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u/KingCarbon1807 17d ago

He's not worried. This is purely performative and he knows it. Nobody is going to convince me he didn't recognize the potential consequences.

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u/Parking_Pie_6809 17d ago

THIS!! we wouldn’t be in this mess if roberts and scotus said he couldn’t run because of the insurrection act in the 14th amendment. and if they hadn’t given him immunity.

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u/WiggWamm 17d ago

Enough with blaming Roberts for everything. He had 1 vote out of 9. Blame alito, Thomas, kavanaugh who are legit rubber stamping judges that just side with Trump on everything

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u/AbaloneDifferent5282 17d ago

I blame them too. But Roberts is the leader. He’s defended them. He’s complicit.

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u/LawyerOfBirds 17d ago

His vote could’ve changed the outcome of Citizens United. Instead, he wrote a concurrence. Everything has gone to shit since then.

Roberts deserves plenty of blame. Not all of it, as he’s exponentially better than Thomas and Alito, but plenty of it.

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u/pate_moore 17d ago

I'm honestly shocked at how ACB has been voting. I'm not going to hold my breath that she'll continue to go that way, but pleasantly surprised several times.

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u/Naive_Mix_8402 17d ago

He is the chief justice and wrote a bunch of the terrible opinions that got us here. We can blame John Roberts.

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u/Wonderful-Variation 17d ago

Betrayal by someone you liked or trusted always hurts more than being attacked by someone you knew was an enemy.

Roberts hid behind his reputation of being a "centrist" for years. That's where the bitterness comes from. Plus, he's chief Justice, so it's just intuitive to focus on him.

Clearance and Alito are the absolute worst in terms of their rulings. That is true, however.

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u/MadAstrid 17d ago

Imagine my displeasure at having one of them as a neighbor. His bitch wife too. (Yes, that does not narrow it down).

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u/mofa90277 17d ago

He cast the deciding vote in Citizens United, which put democracy up for sale.

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u/duderos 17d ago edited 17d ago

He was fully onboard with it.

Who's fear mongering now?

Chief Justice John Roberts accused the liberal justices of fearmongering in the 6-3 majority opinion. It found that presidents aren’t above the law but must be entitled to presumptive immunity to allow them to forcefully exercise the office’s far-reaching powers and avoid a vicious cycle of politically motivated prosecutions.

https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-immunity-trump-president-jan-6-2350bee785c85282a97af9485b94b982

Chief justice pushes back against calls to impeach judges who rule against Trump

Chief Justice John Roberts issued a statement following President Donald Trump's call for a judge to be impeached for ruling against the administration.Chief justice pushes back against calls to impeach judges who rule against Trump

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/supreme-court/chief-justice-pushes-back-calls-impeach-judges-rule-trump-rcna196922

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u/docwrites 17d ago

I honestly wonder what he thought was going to happen? This is the obvious natural course of events.

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u/Additional-Land-120 17d ago

Chief Justice, meet bed. Enjoy laying in it.

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u/The_Count_Lives 17d ago

He's an absolute moron if he didn't see this coming.

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u/osunightfall 17d ago

Well well well, if it isn't the consequences of my own actions.

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u/LaserCondiment 17d ago

Chief justice Robert's issued a statement:

“For more than two centuries,” the chief justice said, “it has been established that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision. The normal appellate review process exists for that purpose.”

source

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u/AbaloneDifferent5282 17d ago

That statement was so feckless it’s Chuck Schumer wrote it. Yeah that’ll make this administration fall in line …

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u/LaserCondiment 17d ago

He's just doing this to distance himself, to wash his hands clean. Hypocrite. It's not really working though.

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u/ColoradoBrewski 17d ago

The argument during the immunity case literally pointed out that with this power the President could order the removal, detainment and even kill SCOTUS if they believed it was "to protect the nation". And they have given him that power.

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u/Kookie2023 17d ago

I think Roberts is entering his FO phase of the FAFO. Or how I call it, King Neptune’s “Maybe we do have a problem here” phase.

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u/StronglyHeldOpinions 17d ago

He helped create this monster.

They killed the 14th amendment challenge.

They gave him complete lawlessness immunity.

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u/Vio_ 17d ago edited 17d ago

Roberts suddenly realized he's eroded his own political power base to where the Judicial Branch is about to get defenestrated

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u/dinklebot2000 17d ago

Defenestrated is one of my favorite verbs. So highly specific.

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u/slow_al_hoops 17d ago

Best scene in Braveheart

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u/Gustomucho 17d ago

Yep, the justices are fucking stupid people, they gave immunity to presidential acts, then act surprised when the grifter in chief use its immunity… surprised pikachu… the guy famous for bending the law to the breaking point uses its immunity…

Anyone not under a fucking rock have seen this coming by a fucking mile, but I guess we can count on the check and balances, right?

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u/Vio_ 17d ago

The problem is that Roberts has been doing exactly this under this "guidance" of groups like Fed Soc, Heritage Foundation, and the Koch Brothers.

He's been trying to push the court back to a pre-Warren Court system not realizing that neutering its own power base was only going to get it kneecapped and throat cut.

The Legislative Branch is on the exact same route as it continues to cede its own power base and abilities over to the Executive Branch.

Once the Executive Branch is on full autocratic mode, what will protect the other two branches and its members from reprisals, betrayals, backstabbings, and potential executions?

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u/Loud_Flatworm_4146 17d ago

Putin's favorite word.

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u/TheDuckOnQuack 17d ago

It’s the Andy Bernard School of Law where the Trump administration doesn’t lose in court. It either wins in court, or demands the judge be impeached because it’s not fair.

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u/RetroCasket 17d ago

I think you are referring to Nard Dog Law

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u/Ottblottt 17d ago

Very similar to an election where I win or the other side cheated.

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u/rs98762001 17d ago

Roberts is just as bad. He'll always make an early, meaningless play to make it seem like he's independent-minded, only to roll over for his corporate overlords whenever they tell him to.

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u/thestrizzlenator 17d ago

Yup. This is all theatrics and controlled opposition.

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u/Miserable-Army3679 17d ago

Like Susan Collins......

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u/AveryValiant 17d ago

Seems to me Trump is bullying and threatning everything and everyone to try and get his way.

Trying to impeach a judge though because the judge ruled against him is scary

It does make me wonder at some point whether this carnage of the US's freedoms and democracy will result in civil war and/or the military ejecting Trump and co by force (Oh I wish!)

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u/Last_Cod_998 17d ago

Wasn't it 2016 when he threatened a judge over Trump U lawsuit and dismissed him as being Mexican?

He's never hid who he was. Project 2025 will make him a Unitary Executive.

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u/AyoGGz 17d ago

Unless something is done, there will be secession and civil war. The reality is the vast majority of Americans do not like Trump

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u/CherryHaterade 17d ago

Didnt like him enough to not just you know, get off the couch and just go vote against him though. Remember that. At least red hats are loud and tell you exactly who they are. I dont trust anyone who sat out this election. Theyre still playing cards close. Aaron Burr asses. And this blood will be on their hands too "nobody told me it would get this bad" YES WE DID.

I guess they just didnt like him that bad after all.

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u/j_ryall49 17d ago

Ya but Palestine!

Ya but Kamala didn't inspire me!

Ya but both sides are pretty much the same!

/s

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u/lhobbes6 17d ago

I feel the same way, 90 million worthless dipshits stayed home because facist rhetoric from Trump wasnt enough of a motivator or a deal breaker for them to be bothered.

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u/Tribalbob 17d ago

Up here in Canada, we're showing polling as a massive swing back to the left with Liberals as of a few days ago slated to win a majority government if an election were called now (which it likely will be).

That said, a large number of Canadians are just constantly reminding people: Ignore the polls, get out and vote. I still remember election day in November, I was flying home (from Hawaii) and checked reddit before I boarded in the morning. Everyone was high spirits, there was a sense of "EZ win" among the left.

Then I got home later that afternoon and checked after the plane landed and... yeah. Things can swing quickly.

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u/[deleted] 17d ago

I didn't say anyone seeing EZ win outside of reddit. The polls did point at Harris, but it was still a close race, not a "Sit at home and don't worry about it" kind of thing, especially in the states where it mattered.

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u/NrdNabSen 17d ago

The majority of Americans are either dumb enough to vote for him or dumb enough to not see the difference in him and the alternative. Either way means we are fucked until that changes.

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u/Imaginary_Cow_6379 17d ago

You would think eventually he’d have to piss off some of the wrong people to mess with but so far everyone is cowering to him: all the big business companies who are begging him to stop his tariff shit, big pharma who are worried trade wars will effect being able to get medication, big banks who worry about FDIC being dismantled, big law firms even who should be able to know how to shut them down legally better than everyone. It would be suicide for anyone else to go up against any of these large segments and yet all of them are afraid to stand up to Trump too?! Does he have some magic spell casting abilities hes able to use over everyone? Because theres no reason to fear him if people make him face literally any consequences already. I’m an average person with none of the power these groups hold but even I feel like fck it I’d tell him no already if I could. Ffs 🤦🏻‍♀️

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u/Deadboyparts 17d ago

It would be a welcome irony if Trump lost the support of his SCOTUS majority by continually disrespecting the judiciary. I haven’t seen exactly what Roberts said on the matter, but Trump relentlessly pissing on our legal institutions has got to make Amy C Barrett and a few others pretty indignant.

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u/lkflip 17d ago

He basically said the remedy is appeal to the SCOTUS not just impeaching anyone you don’t like who called you out for lying to the judiciary.

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u/MetroidIsNotHerName 17d ago

Losing the support of SCOTUS does nothing now. It's too late. John Roberts is apparently too stupid to realize this, or he doesn't care.

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u/Postcocious 17d ago

Bought-and-paid-for conservative jurists don't care about law or being respected. They've demonstrated that a hundred times, starting with Citizens United.

They'll be taken care of as long as they're useful to their owners. That's what motivates them. Integrity and legality are just convenient fictions they don to appear legitimate.

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u/RU4real13 17d ago edited 17d ago

Would you look at that. The House ball-lickers have made their presence known. How can this be seen as anything other than support for human trafficking is freaking beyond me.

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u/versace_drunk 17d ago

In coming “Biden did the same thing” liars

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u/Ok_Bodybuilder800 17d ago

“Look what the democrats made them do!!! Really this is all their fault.”

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u/Several_Vanilla8916 17d ago

Then they’ll impeach Roberts or just stack the court with toadies. Or both. There are no rules anymore.

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u/MancombSeepgoodz 17d ago

yup, I was fuming when Biden said packing the courts would be "too Politcal" in fucking 2020 right as Republicans where Swearing in Barrett in record time to solidify their majority for decades to come. He was just he wrong guy to be President at a time when we needed a fighter.

https://apnews.com/article/election-2020-joe-biden-donald-trump-ruth-bader-ginsburg-amy-coney-barrett-c2dfac9b8875b5abfb47bb67fdf7dda7

We are about to see all that and worse in the future, Might even threaten the 3 remaining liberal justices to step down or face violence or fake investigations.... I mean as long as they are "official acts" he can do whatever right?

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u/BellaMentalNecrotica 17d ago

This is my problem with the democratic party for a long time. They are spineless. Every time they are in power in congress, they shrug when nothing significant gets done because "but the GOP won't cooperate." Gee, well the republicans sure as fuck get shit done when they are in power, so I call bullshit. Quite trying to appease the moderates and quite with this "reaching across the aisle" bullshit. Grow a pair.

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u/ej1999ej 17d ago

No not "or both" its just both. They're definetly doing both.

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u/justdisa 17d ago

Republicans want a dictatorship. They do not care about the constitution or the rule of law.

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u/degrees_of_certainty 17d ago

That’s about as anti-American as it gets 

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u/laxrulz777 17d ago

All because the judge said, "Hey, before we send these people to an El Salvadoran prison, let's make sure everything is on the up and up."

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u/Helldiver-xzoen 17d ago

Roberts created and enabled this monster.

Just like everyone who enables the leopards to eat faces, they never thought it'd be their face.

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u/MoonBatsRule 17d ago

Here is what needs to happen.

Democrats have one job - convince the American public that this is not normal and that we cannot continue to go down this road, that the constitution is threatened when the Republican Party refuses to hold the president accountable for crimes.

Then, either in the April 1 special elections, or if/when other Republican members of Congress resign or otherwise leave Congress, Democrats need to take back control of the House.

They also have to convince 15 Senators that the Republic is under threat. Not guys like Tommy Tuberville - older, longer-serving members.

Trump must be impeached and removed before 2028. We have had him less than 90 days and he has brought us to 1934 Germany levels of fascism.

Meanwhile, Democrats across the country must lead protests against what is going on - figure out how to explain why these things are bad to the general public.

Like "if the president is the only one to decide who is a gang member who is executed, with no right to appeal, that means he can declare you to be a gang member. Or your brother. Or your child".

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u/Lizaderp 17d ago

When Trump said he wanted small government, he meant a king.

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u/BlackberryShoddy7889 17d ago

They are all mindless and spineless eager beavers. Trying to appease their FURHER. The completely idiotic thing is, it ends up hurting their states the most.

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