The Official "Damned Trump" Thread: Phase II

[Thumpalumpacus]

So what? He says he didn't know he was to uphold the Constitution, but when he swore his oath of office those words were directly in his oath -- ergo, he's lying when he says he doesn't know.

Legally binding? Not sure, but it has little to do with the Bible. Two Presidents have sworn in without that book. But he may lose more than an ear in testing it. Impeachment seems to be the answer, but that doesn't seem likely in this era of a pusillanimous Congress. It may fall to the people to remove him from office.

The Bible thing was a joke, mate. Of COURSE the oath is legally binding.

Boru

I looked around for the law making it binding. There's one for Congresscritters and lower-ranking officials, but it's a bit complex when it comes to Presidents:

The Constitution provides no standards for determining whether a President has violated their oath. The fact that other branches interpret the Constitution, and may do do inconsistently with the President, creates difficulties in determining whether the oath has been violated. Just as some Presidents have suggested that the oath may require them to disregard laws when doing so is necessary to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution,1 some lawmakers have argued that the President’s oath requires them to execute all laws, regardless of whether the President believes them to be constitutional.2

The Supreme Court has not addressed these competing views, and the oath and its surrounding text do not suggest that questions about violations of the oath were intended for judicial resolution.3 The Court has held that the President is generally immune from civil or criminal liability for official actions taken while in office, which may impede judicial resolution of questions relating to a President’s violation of their oath arising during the President’s tenure.4 The Constitution’s justiciability requirements are another potential obstacle to resolution in federal court.5

https://constitution.congress.gov/browse..._00013936/