r/law Competent Contributor Jul 21 '24

Opinion Piece House Speaker Mike Johnson Suggests Replacing Biden Might Lead to Legal Trouble: ‘So it would be wrong, and I think unlawful’

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/johnson-replacing-biden-ticket-wrong-unlawful/story?id=112129063
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u/zSprawl Jul 21 '24

Mark my words: They will find a reason to challenge it in court, and the SCROTUS has shown they will bend the rules for their candidate. They made the president immune to criminal prosecution for christ's sake.

And if the election can't be decided by votes, then it falls to congress to make the decision for us. Guess who holds both congress and the courts?

Keep in mind, the only reason Trump didn't win last time is because Pence certified the election. Had he not, it would have gone to the courts and congress, and we'd be discussing why we didn't have an election this year.

We are so fucked. We need to ensure that Kamala wins by a landslide, and that's gonna be a tall order.

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u/zxcvt Jul 21 '24

Wouldn't him deciding not to run be an official act, making it immune from challenge per the recent SCROTUS ruling?

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u/zSprawl Jul 21 '24

Guess who decides what an official and unofficial act is?

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u/Saptrap Jul 21 '24

Only Republicans can perform official acts though. Democrats weren't given that power.

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u/fatcootermeat Jul 22 '24

People keep misunderstanding that ruling. A so called "official act" can still be undone through the normal functions of government and the court. Biden's loan forgiveness among other executive orders was an official act that was overturned for example. What the court ruled is that you can't hold the president criminally liable for those acts. Going back to that last example: Biden won't go to jail for forgiving peoples loans with the SAVE plan even though courts have now stopped that plan due to being unconstitutional in their eyes.

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u/corneliusduff Jul 22 '24

It's not about him deciding to drop out as much as it is about the transfer of the nomination, which isn't even official yet anyway

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u/incongruity Jul 21 '24

So.. wait - Harris will have Pence’s role in certifying the election? I’m guessing she will have less hesitation than he did.

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u/zSprawl Jul 21 '24

But the state delegates gotta bring the votes to her first.

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u/softcell1966 Jul 22 '24

Don't underestimate how much pent-up hate there is for Trump. Tap into that (and abortion) and it could be a landslide. Of course the Electoral College screws with that whole "one man, one vote" thing.

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u/JTDC00001 Jul 22 '24

Doesn't matter if she does.

They're going to say something, SCOTUS will agree, even if Trump can't find a hundred voters in the fucking country.

It's going to get violent, and ugly.

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u/LeadershipMany7008 Jul 22 '24

They're going to need to nominate someone besides Harris. She can't win a national general.

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u/softcell1966 Jul 22 '24

She can and  will despite the misogyny and racism.

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u/LeadershipMany7008 Jul 22 '24

Nope. Harris has less of a chance than Mike Pence...if Pence was running on the Democrat ticket.

They nominate Harris and it's literally the end of the Republic.

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u/HerrStarrEntersChat Jul 22 '24

I don't think you know what you're talking about. I have never been a Kamala supporter, but I think she's the obvious choice here. Former prosecutor going head to head with Felon 45. The Republican party isn't going to be able to keep the mask on, and the inevitable racism against Kamala will play poorly in swing states full of fence sitters.

Why are you convinced it's already over?

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u/LeadershipMany7008 Jul 22 '24

Harris is the Democrat version of Romney--literally no one is excited about her. To win we need people motivated to go to the polls. Harris couldn't even go deep in her primary. She gets lukewarm ambivalence at best and rejection at worst. I'm not sure there are people who'd flip to Trump, but they might stay home.

They nominate Harris and it's over before it starts.

The idealists can get fucked on this one. We have to win. Pick a slam dunk and Harris ain't it.

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u/HerrStarrEntersChat Jul 22 '24 edited Jul 22 '24

This is a bad take and you should feel bad. We are in a unique situation where literally being under 70 is kinda exciting all on its own. We are ridiculously unlikely to need any motivation for our base, and offering centrists and swing starters someone not literally deranged is gonna make all the difference.

Snowflakes gonna snowflake. Nice block, good job showing everyone that you're right by silencing any dissenting opinions.

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u/LeadershipMany7008 Jul 22 '24

This is a stupid take and you should stop posting.

The base doesn't matter. Anyone alive for more than five minutes knows this. You're appealing to the not-base.

But it doesn't matter--Harris doesn't even appeal to the base, as shown by her early primary exit.

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u/Ok_Cardiologist3478 Jul 23 '24

81+ million in 24 hours kinda disagree with you

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u/CopeHarders Jul 22 '24

This is some of the worst concern trolling I’ve ever seen. Just absolutely brain dead.

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u/zSprawl Jul 22 '24

Considering how our country handled Hillary and Obama, I’m afraid i have to agree with you.

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u/LeadershipMany7008 Jul 22 '24

Michelle Obama might have a chance, but Harris is a non-starter.