I HAVE IMMUNITY BECAUSE I AM PRESIDENT

A few years ago, a young man shot and killed his parents in front of witnesses.

He was tried for murder, and as he plead for his life he made the point that as an orphan he was entitled to special protection under the law because he had no parents to look after him.  He was, unsurprisingly, convicted.

Trump is now trying to convince the country that Presidents are like self-actuated orphans — beyond the law, particularly while they hold office.

He does not even acknowledge or try to explain the crystal-clear wording in the Constitution that explicitly gives the House of Representatives full authority to IMPEACH (charge) a President for ‘high crimes and misdemeanors.’

Trump is claiming that, as President, he is immune to all charges, of any sort, which could relieve him of the Presidency, and that he need not comply with lawfully issued requests or even subpoenas if he, “in his great and unmatched wisdom,” unilaterally deems the inquiry “unfair.”

It’s a great leap of imagination, to be sure. But if offers a clear and compelling way to explain Trump’s non-sensical defense to the public: there is no higher office in the land, so Trump claims he cannot be held accountable because there was no one watching over him.

When you’ve self-actuated your own impeachment, the “orphan defense” probably seems a not-terrible plan. It may also be the simplest way to underscore to the public Trump’s disdain for truth, law, and democracy.