To the extent that the majority's new accountability paradigm allows Presidents to evade punishment for their criminal acts while in office, the seeds of absolute power for Presidents have been planted. And, without a doubt, absolute power corrupts absolutely.
Likewise, if the Government becomes a lawbreaker, it breeds contempt for law; it invites every man to become a law unto himself; it invites anarchy. I worry that, after today's ruling, our Nation will reap what this Court has sown.
The Court has now declared for the first time in history that the most powerful official in the United States can become a law unto himself. The People, in their wisdom, will need to remain ever attentive, serving as the ultimate safeguard against any chaos spawned by this Court's decision.
The majority's senseless discarding of a model of accountability for criminal acts that treats every citizen of this country as being equally subject to the law as the Rule of Law requires. This core principle has long prevented our Nation from devolving into despotism.
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