We've focused on Trump, but DeSantis would do the same, & probably more efficiently. The AG should be independent. It's the people's prosecutor & is expected to be fair & unbiased, but if any of the leading Republican candidates become President, it's a foregone conclusion that it will be used for vendettas to persecute their opponents.
Can some here cure me of my despair? I'd like to think that codifying the independence of the Justice Department into law would make it so. But if the Trump years have taught us anything, it's that the laws are only worth anything when people in power abide by them.
Dr. Reich, I always look forward to your writings. Besides knowing history as well as you do, you clear thinking, integrity and honesty is most inspiring. You are a giant when it comes to brain power and I salute you every day.
What I think is that we should never assume that now we are "safe." We are never safe from human corruption at any level or in any sector of society. There are always people looking for, and locating, loopholes. Every opportunity available to an Administration, Congress, and the Courts to fully protect the vulnerable among us should be seized, set in stone, and implemented.
He is trying to control the narrative. He was so angry Chuck Todd had Barr on Meet the Press he called the director of NBC demanding Todd be fired. The next thing you know, Chuck Todd in an emotional speech said he was retiring from Meet the Press. I don’t believe it was voluntary.
Chuck Todd is an excellent interviewer who asks the tough questions. Very intelligent, very polite but persevering. He exposed Trump and Trump didn’t like it.
I'm not sure tweaks like Senator Sam Ervin's proposal is going to make much difference, but it should certainly be considered. It seems like for every change, there are unintended consequences or somebody soon figures out a way to gain the system. Thanks for the education Professor Reich.
I believe that Mitch McConnell and the republicans did this country the greatest injustice by not convicting 45 during the second trial. However I also don’t believe 45 will be re-elected again, and if he doesn’t he’ll have so many convictions for his crimes that he’ll either die during the appeal process or in prison. If President Biden wins by even a larger margin in 2024, the down ballots would be even more favorable to democrats and independents. Then and only then will his base crumble, and congress can get back to making the United States a fairer country for all its citizens. We are a great country, we just have an infection to drain and cure.
Hillary Clinton warned us before and after the 2016 election what we were in for. She was spot on. So VOTE, VOTE,
Dr. Reich, thank you for the history lesson. The only fear I have is losing people like you who still have the guts to speak the truth about the American history that has brought us to this point. I don’t fear Trump’s insanity as much as I am concerned about those who have hitched their wagon to his coach and decided to follow him to the grave. Trump could not be effective, but for those who have chosen to give their power to discern the truth about their lives to a wannabe dictator who does not care if the American people and it’s democracy is turned into ashes. So, my constant refrain is WHY? Why is that so-called 30+% of our electorate willing to destroy the fabric of our democracy to satisfy his tired ego? Although, I believe it goes a little further than that. Why is the 30+% afraid of real freedom for the people of this country?
The damage Trump incurred on us will take decade to repair. The DOJ does need to be insulted to add protection. There are those in that department who were placed their by him who still are a threat.
It seems to me that no matter how many controls you put in place there is always a way for the evil minded to to get around such rules. We keep having to rely on a human being's judgment, which can be as flawed as they desire it to be....trump has made us realize just how evil that evil really is, showing us that no amount of rational laws can compensate for the twisted mind of the devil himself ! We now know that it can never be enough to say 'nobody would do that !' - !!!
Ervin’s proposal would still allow presidents to appoint the Attorney General. It is possible that a one term president might not get a chance to do so. So Trump would have under this proposal, an excellent chance to appoint the attorney general of his choice. As for the other proposed reform, that the Supreme Court should make the appointment, that would have seemed appropriate enough before the Supreme Court had been transformed into a partisan tool of the rightwing as well. The fact is that our institutions were designed to deal with the possibility of a rogue individual or individuals, not a rogue political party, determined to undermine our constitution and to set up an authoritarian government in its place. We now have that rogue party, on control of the Supreme Court and the House of Representatives, supporting a former president and presidential candidate whose past conduct and present speech makes perfectly clear his contempt for the constitution and the rule of law. We have Representatives who are determined to use House committees to undermine the rule of law, to block federal investigations of serious crime and to conduct investigations of their own for purely partisan purposes. And almost no one from this rogue party, in any public position, is willing to oppose any of this in any way, by speech or action.
I am all for an independent Justice System as proposed, but then I think about our Supreme Court and I have to question just how much that can really obliterate the interference of outside interests . . . .
We've focused on Trump, but DeSantis would do the same, & probably more efficiently. The AG should be independent. It's the people's prosecutor & is expected to be fair & unbiased, but if any of the leading Republican candidates become President, it's a foregone conclusion that it will be used for vendettas to persecute their opponents.
Can some here cure me of my despair? I'd like to think that codifying the independence of the Justice Department into law would make it so. But if the Trump years have taught us anything, it's that the laws are only worth anything when people in power abide by them.
Dr. Reich, I always look forward to your writings. Besides knowing history as well as you do, you clear thinking, integrity and honesty is most inspiring. You are a giant when it comes to brain power and I salute you every day.
Eva Foreman
What I think is that we should never assume that now we are "safe." We are never safe from human corruption at any level or in any sector of society. There are always people looking for, and locating, loopholes. Every opportunity available to an Administration, Congress, and the Courts to fully protect the vulnerable among us should be seized, set in stone, and implemented.
Well Folks :
Here are our choices:
* Democrats which is a form of the word Democracy (VOTE TO SAVE)
* Republicans (Fascist Dictatorship = No Freedoms)
Even as a non-US citizen, I want to thank you for this extremely important wake-up call which has implications for the whole world.
Absolutely, but I wouldn't put it under the corrupt, wing-nut activist Supreme Court.
He is trying to control the narrative. He was so angry Chuck Todd had Barr on Meet the Press he called the director of NBC demanding Todd be fired. The next thing you know, Chuck Todd in an emotional speech said he was retiring from Meet the Press. I don’t believe it was voluntary.
Chuck Todd is an excellent interviewer who asks the tough questions. Very intelligent, very polite but persevering. He exposed Trump and Trump didn’t like it.
The damage to our country goes back further and deeper than what Trump and his Republican enablers have wrought. I recommend this article from the NYT yesterday. It's an excellent summary of where we are in history and what happened. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/18/business/economy/global-economy-us-china.html
I'm not sure tweaks like Senator Sam Ervin's proposal is going to make much difference, but it should certainly be considered. It seems like for every change, there are unintended consequences or somebody soon figures out a way to gain the system. Thanks for the education Professor Reich.
I believe that Mitch McConnell and the republicans did this country the greatest injustice by not convicting 45 during the second trial. However I also don’t believe 45 will be re-elected again, and if he doesn’t he’ll have so many convictions for his crimes that he’ll either die during the appeal process or in prison. If President Biden wins by even a larger margin in 2024, the down ballots would be even more favorable to democrats and independents. Then and only then will his base crumble, and congress can get back to making the United States a fairer country for all its citizens. We are a great country, we just have an infection to drain and cure.
Hillary Clinton warned us before and after the 2016 election what we were in for. She was spot on. So VOTE, VOTE,
VOTE.
Dr. Reich, thank you for the history lesson. The only fear I have is losing people like you who still have the guts to speak the truth about the American history that has brought us to this point. I don’t fear Trump’s insanity as much as I am concerned about those who have hitched their wagon to his coach and decided to follow him to the grave. Trump could not be effective, but for those who have chosen to give their power to discern the truth about their lives to a wannabe dictator who does not care if the American people and it’s democracy is turned into ashes. So, my constant refrain is WHY? Why is that so-called 30+% of our electorate willing to destroy the fabric of our democracy to satisfy his tired ego? Although, I believe it goes a little further than that. Why is the 30+% afraid of real freedom for the people of this country?
The damage Trump incurred on us will take decade to repair. The DOJ does need to be insulted to add protection. There are those in that department who were placed their by him who still are a threat.
It seems to me that no matter how many controls you put in place there is always a way for the evil minded to to get around such rules. We keep having to rely on a human being's judgment, which can be as flawed as they desire it to be....trump has made us realize just how evil that evil really is, showing us that no amount of rational laws can compensate for the twisted mind of the devil himself ! We now know that it can never be enough to say 'nobody would do that !' - !!!
Yes. Safeguards for justice are essential if we are to protect ourselves from self serving, govern-by-decree presidents.
Ervin’s proposal would still allow presidents to appoint the Attorney General. It is possible that a one term president might not get a chance to do so. So Trump would have under this proposal, an excellent chance to appoint the attorney general of his choice. As for the other proposed reform, that the Supreme Court should make the appointment, that would have seemed appropriate enough before the Supreme Court had been transformed into a partisan tool of the rightwing as well. The fact is that our institutions were designed to deal with the possibility of a rogue individual or individuals, not a rogue political party, determined to undermine our constitution and to set up an authoritarian government in its place. We now have that rogue party, on control of the Supreme Court and the House of Representatives, supporting a former president and presidential candidate whose past conduct and present speech makes perfectly clear his contempt for the constitution and the rule of law. We have Representatives who are determined to use House committees to undermine the rule of law, to block federal investigations of serious crime and to conduct investigations of their own for purely partisan purposes. And almost no one from this rogue party, in any public position, is willing to oppose any of this in any way, by speech or action.
I am all for an independent Justice System as proposed, but then I think about our Supreme Court and I have to question just how much that can really obliterate the interference of outside interests . . . .