By ruling on Thursday against President Donald Trump’s effort to prevent a New York grand jury from getting its hands on his financial documents, the Supreme Court emphatically told Trump that no one — not even the President of the United States — is above the law. All nine justices agreed with one aspect of the ruling, that a president does not enjoy absolute immunity from state criminal process. A 7-to-2 majority also ruled that a state grand jury does not need to show a “heightened need” before serving a subpoena on a president. And, when it comes to congressional subpoenas, that solid majority rejected Trump’s insistence that the House of Representatives must demonstrate “specific need” before obtaining his financial and banking records.
By ruling on Thursday against President Donald Trump’s effort to prevent a New York grand jury from getting its hands on his financial documents, the Supreme Court emphatically told Trump that no one — not even the President of the United States — is above the law. All nine justices agreed with one aspect of the ruling, that a president does not enjoy absolute immunity from state criminal process. A 7-to-2 majority also ruled that a state grand jury does not need to show a “heightened need” before serving a subpoena on a president. And, when it comes to congressional subpoenas, that solid majority rejected Trump’s insistence that the House of Representatives must demonstrate “specific need” before obtaining his financial and banking records.
