Members of Count Every Hero, former service secretaries, and other retired four star officers sign amicus brief highlighting the importance of Constitutional rule of law to national security
Washington DC – Members of Count Every Hero anchored a group of 19 former service secretaries and retired four star officers in filing an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court that highlighted the threats that broad presidential criminal immunity would pose to our Constitution and national security.
The “theory that the President is absolutely immune from criminal prosecution, if accepted, has the potential to severely undermine the Commander-in-Chief’s legal and moral authority to lead the military forces, as it would signal that they but not he must obey the rule of law,” the former national security leaders wrote in their brief. “Under this theory, the President could, with impunity, direct his national security appointees to, in turn, direct members of the military to execute plainly unlawful orders, placing those in the chain of command in an untenable position and irreparably harming the trust fundamental to civil-military relations.”
The Constitution enshrines the rule of law, which has always applied to all no matter their stature or office. “From the Founding to the present day, a steadfast commitment to these principles has successfully guided us through two world wars and numerous other conflicts; provided the stability needed for our democratic republic to flourish; and ensured that the military has the capacity to defend our nation by being trained and ready to fight and win its wars,” they wrote in their brief.
They also declared that any assertion that the president is above our nation’s laws, and above accountability, are “contrary to the foundational principles of our democracy.”
Read the full amicus brief here.