Hiding Behind Immunity
“Before he [the President] enters on the execution of his Office, he shall take the following Oath or Affirmation: ‘I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States.’”
Members of Congress take a similar oath of office.
The complaint filed in Liberty Legal Foundation’s lawsuit against Obamacare accuses President Obama, Nancy Pelosi, and Harry Reid of violating their oaths of office. Rather than answer this accusation, they claimed immunity. Their motion to dismiss states:
"That Plaintiffs claim defendants Reid and Pelosi have violated the Constitution is of no significance; such a claim does not evade the Speech or Debate bar, as legislative immunity is absolute."
They did not deny that they violated their oaths. They did not deny that their actions violate the Constitution. They simply claimed immunity.
Let me be clear, the President and members of Congress have the legal right to claim immunity. Legally they are not required to deny our accusations. However, they could have claimed immunity AND denied our accusations. They didn’t do that. They also have the right to waive their immunity and respond to the accusations. They didn’t do that. They simply claimed immunity.
Now, if you were publicly accused of violating the Constitution and violating an oath, how would you respond? If more than 30,000 Americans accused you of breaking your solemn word, would you hide behind immunity? If you had the right to claim immunity AND deny the accusation, would you deny the accusations or leave them unanswered?
OK, let’s change the question a little: If you were accused of violating an oath AND you were actually innocent of that accusation, would you leave the accusation unanswered? I think you see my point.
We at Liberty Legal Foundation are disappointed, but not surprised, that Obama, Pelosi, and Reid would rather hide behind immunity than respond to such serious accusations.The Obamacare Class Action lawsuit will continue regardless of whether the President, Pelosi, and Reid are personally immune. Our claim that Obamacare is unconstitutional forces the U.S. government to respond whether or not Obama, Pelosi, and Reid are personally liable for their actions. However, we are pointing out the actions of these individuals because it reflects how far out of control our Federal government and courts have become.
That the President and members of Congress are immune from accusations such as those in the OCA lawsuit, is a reflection on how far American courts have limited the purpose and power of our Constitution. Immunities granted to the President and members of Congress are directly responsible for the lack of respect our so-called leaders have for the Constitution. Such immunities should be rescinded. Once we have achieved our victory in the OCA lawsuit, Liberty Legal Foundation plans to return to the immunity issue and challenge the Supreme Court precedent that established these immunities.
For now, we wanted you to be aware that the President, Pelosi, and Reid apparently don’t care enough about their oaths or our Constitution to even deny our accusations.
We must press on against this disregard, arrogance and condescension and continue our fight to restore the intent of our Constitution. Thank you for being part of this battle.
In Liberty,
Van Irion
Co-Founder, Lead Counsel
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