Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Friday said that if elected president, she would appoint an assistant attorney general who would reverse Justice Department guidelines that say a sitting president can’t be indicted for criminal behavior.
“No matter what he may think, Donald Trump is not a king. No president is. And our democracy only works if everyone can be held accountable,” the Massachusetts Democrat and 2020 presidential candidate said in a Medium post.
Ms. Warren said that as president, she would appoint an assistant attorney general in charge of DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) who would reverse the office’s legal opinion on indicting a president.
Special counsel Robert Mueller said this week that charging President Trump with a crime stemming from Mr. Mueller’s probe on Russian interference in the 2016 campaign wasn’t an option because of the DOJ policy.
Mr. Mueller also said that based on what he found, he couldn’t exonerate the president, either.
Ms. Warren also said she wants Congress to pass a law to clarify that the Justice Department can indict a sitting president, and amend obstruction of justice statutes to allow for indictments for presidential abuses of power.
“Yes, Congress has a constitutional obligation to impeach the president when he violates the law,” she said. “But lawyers for previous presidents have used this constitutional duty to argue that the only way the president can be held accountable for criminal behavior is through impeachment.”
“Congress should make it clear that the president can be held accountable for violating the law, just like everyone else,” she said.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.