Retired Judge Luttig Supports Biden’s Constitutional Amendment on Immunity

Retired federal judge J. Michael Luttig said Monday he supports President Biden’s proposal for a constitutional amendment to counteract the recent Supreme Court decision granting former presidents broad immunity from criminal prosecution for actions taken while in office.

The change would partially overturn the landmark immunity ruling, making clear that former presidents do not enjoy criminal immunity from federal criminal charges. The “No One is Above the Law” Amendment, however, would not apply to state charges.

“I support a constitutional amendment that would repudiate the Supreme Court’s unfaithful decision in Trump v. United States and would restore our Nation’s and our Constitution’s animating principle that no man is above the law, least of all the President of the United States,” Luttig wrote in a post on social media platform X.

Luttig — a longtime conservative judge — sharply criticized the July 1 ruling, which handed former President Trump a major victory by convicting some elements of his criminal cases.

The 6-3 ruling earlier this month ruled that presidents have absolute immunity for actions taken within the scope of their essential official responsibilities, and that they have presumptive immunity for all other official acts.

In his statement on Monday, Luttig called the immunity decision “abhorrent” and said that, with the ruling, “the Supreme Court has cut the heart and soul of America’s Democracy and Rule of Law.”

“It can no longer be said that in America no man is above the law, because on that day, the Supreme Court held that the President of the United States – and in particular the former President of the United States – is in fact above the law,” he added.

The plan comes after the president withdrew from the 2024 race against Trump earlier this month and endorsed Vice President Harris to lead the ticket. In his address to the nation last week, Biden said he would use much of the remainder of his term to carry out reforms at the high court.

The constitutional amendment was one of three main judicial reform proposals that the president unveiled on Monday. He also called for term limits for judges and a binding code of ethics. The announcement marked a major shift for Biden, who had long resisted calls from the left to push for court reform.

“This nation was founded on the principle that there are no kings in America,” Biden said in a speech Monday. “Each of us legally follows the law. No one is above the law. For all practical purposes, the court’s decision almost certainly means that a president can violate his oath, disregard our laws and face no consequences.”

Luttig has in recent years been among the most prominent conservative critics of Trump and his efforts to remain in power after losing the 2020 election to Biden. The former judge even testified during House hearings into the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol.

He also criticized the high court for previous rulings involving Trump, including ruling that the 14th Amendment’s ban on insurrection did not disqualify the former president from voting.

This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story