Victoria Toensing, a former deputy assistant attorney general, criticized Vice President Kamala Harris' support for President Joe Biden's proposed presidential immunity reforms during an appearance on Newsmax's "American Agenda," saying it's Biden's handling of classified documents that is "above the law."
Biden on Monday proposed major changes for the U.S. Supreme Court: an enforceable code of ethics, term limits for justices, and a constitutional amendment that would limit the justices' recent decision giving former president Donald Trump — and all other presidents — broad immunity from criminal prosecution.
"I'll tell you somebody who's above the law: an elderly, well-meaning man with a poor memory — because he violated the classified information law, pure as can be," Toensing said. "I mean, real simple: He had classified information he wasn't supposed to have.
"He not only admitted it to his biographer, but he told his biographer what he had. And yet the [special counsel Robert] Hur report said, 'Well, we're not going to do it because he's a poor old man.' So he is above the law, and Kamala is right along with him."
The "No One Is Above the Law Amendment" proposed by Biden states that the "Constitution does not confer any immunity from federal criminal indictment, trial, conviction, or sentencing by virtue of previously serving as president," The Washington Post reported.
Harris, the presumptive Democrat presidential nominee, "endorsed" her boss' proposals Monday in a post on X: "There is a clear crisis of confidence facing the U.S. Supreme Court. That is why President @JoeBiden and I are calling on Congress to pass important reforms — from imposing term limits to requiring compliance with binding ethics rules.
"And in our democracy, no one should be above the law. So we must also ensure that no former President has immunity for crimes committed while in the White House," she wrote.
In a Washington Post opinion piece published Monday, Biden called on Congress to establish term limits and an ethics code for the court's nine justices, CBS News reported. He also urged lawmakers to ratify a constitutional amendment limiting presidential immunity.
"I have great respect for our institutions and separation of powers," Biden wrote. "What is happening now is not normal, and it undermines the public's confidence in the court's decisions, including those impacting personal freedoms. We now stand in a breach.
"That's why — in the face of increasing threats to America's democratic institutions — I am calling for three bold reforms to restore trust and accountability to the court and our democracy," Biden added.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
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Jim Thomas ✉
Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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