Counter offer: Pass a law barring people facing felony charges from running for President.
If it would keep you from owning a gun:
ATF form 4473, line 21c and d:
"c. Are you under indictment or information in any court for a felony, or any other crime for which the judge could imprison you for more than one year, or are you a current member of the military who has been charged with violation(s) of the Uniform Code of Military Justice and whose charge(s) have been referred to a general court-martial?
d. Have you ever been convicted in any court, including a military court, of a felony, or any other crime for which the judge could have imprisoned you for more than one year, even if you received a shorter sentence including probation?"
Why should you be allowed the button? 🤔
Super easy for those in power to keep their rivals from being able to run for office. Currently the president and afraid you’ll be unseated by the opposing party’s candidate? Just start an investigation on them! Boom, no more rivals.
Totally agree. These systems are critically important for our society. They need to be considered with care, and we need to be mindful of the complexities that come with any changes to them.
Pros:
- Maintaining public trust and promoting integrity
- Barring those under felony indictment from running for office could help maintain public confidence in the integrity of elected officials and the political process.
- It sets a higher standard for candidates, emphasizing that those seeking public office should not be facing serious criminal charges.
- It underscores the expectation that public officials should be free from wrongdoing and suspicion of significant criminal activity, cultivating a political environment where ethical behavior is prioritized.
- Reducing corruption and preventing distractions
- Individuals under felony indictment may be more susceptible to engaging in corrupt activities. Preventing them from running for office reduces the likelihood of corrupt practices infiltrating government.
- Legal battles can be time-consuming and distracting, detracting from a candidate’s ability to focus on campaigning and, if elected, governing effectively.
- If an elected official is convicted of a felony while in office, it could lead to their removal, necessitating a special election and causing disruption and additional costs.
- If an elected official is convicted of a felony while in office, that individual may use the office itself to avoid sentencing outcomes.
- Maintaining national security
- [While I am less than thrilled to include this one, ] Allowing individuals under felony indictment to run for office could pose national security risks, especially if their past actions have compromised national security.
- Individuals under the influence of external and independent nations may have resources beyond the intended scope of our elections process, giving them an artificial boost towards victory. This is akin to a complete capture of our Government in the case of the Office of the Presidency. Or near enough.
Cons:
- Presumption of innocence and potential for political manipulation
- In the U.S. legal system, individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty. Preventing those under indictment from running could be seen as undermining this principle by imposing a penalty based on an unproven allegation.
- There is a risk that felony charges could be brought against candidates for political reasons to prevent them from running, exploiting the indictment process to eliminate competition and undermine the fairness of elections.
- Limiting voters’ choices and potential for disenfranchisement
- Such a restriction would limit the pool of candidates available to voters, potentially preventing them from choosing their preferred representative.
- Voters may wish to support a candidate who, despite being under indictment, they believe is the best choice. Restricting candidates based on indictments can be seen as undemocratic and paternalistic.
- Variable legal standards and unequal treatment
- Different jurisdictions may have varying standards and processes for indictments, leading to potential inconsistencies in the application of this restriction.
- This variability can result in unequal treatment of candidates based on where they are running for office, creating a patchwork of standards that complicates the electoral process.
- Depending on how such a rule is applied, it could disproportionately affect certain communities that face higher rates of criminal legal system involvement.
My conclusion. This was stated elsewhere in the comments and is also my number one priority (aside from an alternative voting pipe dream):
-Education.
With an educated, well-reasoning and engaged populace, we don’t need the Government to coddle its voters. It’s a wonder Republicans are so against education and critical thinking skills.
One additional note that doesn’t really fit in the pros/cons list itself: This change would probably require a constitutional amendment, not just a standard law.
Edit- sources for further reading
https://www.voanews.com/a/can-felons-serve-in-us-elected-federal-offices-/6703196.html
Assuming a corrupt system, yes. But in our current system? Not so much. Trump deserves each of his felony indictments and if it would keep him from buying a gun, which it does, it should block him from being Commander in Chief.
I don’t think our current system is nearly as robust as you think. Trump’s first term laid that bare.
So many laws dictating what the president can and can’t do don’t have any actual repercussions for breaking them written in them because it was assumed impeachment would be sufficient. Trump showed that with our current system that means if you can’t guarantee you’ll have 67 votes in the Senate, then those laws may as well not exist. And every week the Supreme Court shows how much “settled case law” isn’t anymore, so with a corrupt high court in his league, even the laws that do have teeth may be subverted.
We absolutely need to make changes to shore up the system and plug the gaps, but we have to do so with care that we don’t end up handing new, more powerful weapons to the very bad actors we’re trying to protect against.
The problem is not that Trump is under felony indictment. It’s not that he’s a liar, a cheater, a misogynist, narcissist, and elitist. It’s that, knowing this, a lot of people STILL support him for our nation’s top office. That’s how screwed up our populace has become. That’s the problem.
I think it’s important to consider just how… ickily inviolable most (if not all) of the right wing feels about the second amendment. I don’t think this line of logic would carry much weight with that crowd.
But I agree with what you’re saying. We need much more stringent controls on who is eligible for office.
But how is it fair for so many of his trials and investigations to drag on for 4 years, especially when the accusations are this serious?
Among the bill’s cosponsors is House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), who recently told Politico, “I think it’s common sense that you can’t have the president sitting in the Oval Office worried about whether some lawyer or some local DA somewhere is going to go after him.”
How is this common sense? Politicians are in urgent need of more fear of the law and voters.
Can you imagine if this was normalized for the president, and then over time became acceptable for other people?
“You can’t have congress people worried about whether some lawyer will go after them.”
“You can’t have CEO’s worried about whether the DA will go after them.”
“You can’t expect your boss to worry about whether you will go after them.”
“You can’t expect your pastor to worry about whether the faithless will go after them.”
The President is worried about the world getting nuked, spies, destabilization, economy, and more. A lawyer is the LEAST of their worries and, honestly, shouldn’t be worried unless they breach the duties of their position.
In the end, they are a representative of US. They are still a person, albeit with a ton of power, but a person who represents a country. They are human and should be subject to all of the same laws. So should all forms of government (Legislative and Judicial). Just because we provide you with our voice doesn’t mean you get to not be held accountable when you misrepresent or flat out do illegal shit.
“I’d like to be able to commit unlimited acts that violate state laws, please.”
What the literal fuck.
Republicans: “We see no problems with this whatsoever.”
Remember: they aren’t arguing Trump didn’t break the law, they’re arguing that the Democrats are wrong to prosecute him for it.
they’re arguing that the Democrats are wrong to prosecute him for it.
Also worth saying that Democrats aren’t prosecuting him. This has been a recurring piece of disinformation spread by Republicans since the first official charge against Trump.
He broke the law. The justice system is prosecuting him. Not Biden, not Democrats, but the judicial branch of the government.
Thank you. And shame on the people who downvoted you. They’ve clearly never seen a disabled person bullied severely with that word.
Lemmy is going downhill pretty fast… just today there was a transphobic meme that got hundreds of upvotes before getting removed (at least i cant see it anymore from blahaj). Feels like crap like this is getting more and more common every day.
Yeah. Best they can do is… a few bullshit gestures that will go no where.
unless they win.
