Opinion | The Rule of Law Is for Suckers (Gift Article)

one of those columns of mine you can tell was written in a research library dedicated to the early republic

Crucial from @jamellebouie.net: Trump is in a position to baselessly prosecute his critics in no small part because there's no counterveiling check on it and he's been insulated from any/all accountability for it later. His dictatorial rule has interlocking parts. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

a rare example of CROMULENT in the New York Times, outside of a crossword column, without any invocation of the Simpsons or explanation of its definition. @jamellebouie.net, of course www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

The trouble with hanging our hats on "rule of law" arguments is that the ruler simply decides he makes the laws, especially when the interests of the billionaires who purchased themselves Roberts Court Justices align with his. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

A fantastic essay by @jamellebouie.net on how Trump is proving that the Anti-Federalists were right about the president not having enough constraints in the proposed U.S. Constitution. The pardon power and the "official acts" nonsense by SCOTUS are a recipe for tyranny:

Jamelle Bouie. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

"There is a word for a system where the chief executive is outside the law and can use the force of the state against his enemies without any real obstacle, a word that was very much on the minds of the framers of the Constitution: tyranny."

@jamellebouie.net should win a Pulitzer Prize for this column alone. Just a brilliant analysis of the relevant constitutional and historical issues. The one point I'd add is that the abuse of the pardon power involves a kind of pure executive prerogative that Trump v. U.S. does so much to protect.

“That Trump is something like the apotheosis of the dysfunction of the American system does not mean that he is the end of the story. He may well be the beginning of something much worse. Our job is to make him a blip in the history of American democracy and not the opening act of its demise.“

One of the things I greatly appreciate about @jamellebouie.net is the melodic and rhythmic pacing of his writing. Yes, the historical evidence and connections to now make his arguments worth reading, as we nod our heads in agreement. But my god the dude can write. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

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….. If, having investigated the administration, Democrats find evidence of criminal behavior— Democrats should treat those pardons as null, void, illegitimate in light of what the Constitution implies about the limits of pardon power — and of presidential power. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Required reading. archive.is/Wkf3Z

"Chief Justice John Roberts is preoccupied with the expansion of executive power at the expense of Congress. It seems that in his view, an erratic, lawless president is small price to pay for summoning the unitary executive into existence" www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

"If, having investigated the administration, Democrats find evidence of criminal behavior — and if they find that a pardon was issued to preclude criminal prosecution — Democrats should treat those pardons as null, void and illegitimate... www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Jamelle Bouie mines sanity, and the vein is rich. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

—— Jamelle Bouie “…Trump is not the first president to break the law…not the first president to disregard the law…not even the first president to insist that his actions cannot, on some deep ontological level, be illegal. But he may be the first…to abandon the pretense that the law matters at all.”

Jamelle Bouie nails it: Trump is the self-dealing crooked landlord, and the US is his property. Gift article: www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

“His ideological obsession with whitening the United States can be seen in terms of his fundamentally aesthetic preoccupations. What else is mass deportation than the effort of a lifelong landlord to remove the people he thinks degrade the value of the property?” www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

The Rule of Law Is for Suckers www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Jamelle Bouie:To grant the president criminal immunity on top of his plenary power to pardon is, in effect, to extend the zone of lawlessness to the entire executive branch. The part of government meant to execute and enforce the law is now...free from it altogether. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

"A Constitution that would allow the president to break the law and then pardon the perpetrators is one that becomes the author of its own demise. We know the Constitution was not written to facilitate its own destruction, so we should treat that outcome as absurd." www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

querying history www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

The Rule of Law Is for Suckers www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Opinion | The Rule of Law Is for Suckers (Gift Article) f the nyt

"It is the essential task of the next Democratic majority, and the next Democratic presidency for that matter, to begin the reconstruction of American democracy with the rule of law in mind." @jamellebouie.net www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Excellent piece by @jamellebouie.net "There is a word for a system where the chief executive is outside the law and can use the force of the state against his enemies without any real obstacle, a word that was very much on the minds of the framers of the Constitution: tyranny." (Gift article)

The Rule of Law Is for Suckers www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

"But good government, now or in the future, is impossible without accountability. To set that aside is to condemn the United States to another national exercise in corruption and authoritarian rule." - @jamellebouie.net www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Bouie on Trump seeing the US as a piece of his property: “What else is mass deportation than the effort of a lifelong landlord to remove the people he thinks degrade the value of the property?”

“His ideological obsession with whitening the United States can be seen in terms of his fundamentally aesthetic preoccupations. What else is mass deportation than the effort of a lifelong landlord to remove the people he thinks degrade the value of the property?” www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Should the president “at any time be impelled by ambition, or blinded by passion, and boldly attempt to pass the bounds prescribed to his power, he is liable to be impeached and removed from office; and afterwards he is subject to indictment, trial, judgment and punishment according to the law.”

This is another excellent column by Jamelle Bouie. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Whoops, I should link to the very fine whole: www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

An excellent essay on the depth of trump's ambition: www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

🎁

Trump Cannot Be the End of the Story www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

The Rule of Law Is for Suckers www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

An argument for accountability, even if it nominally violates the Constitution. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

“It is useful to think about the Constitution not just as a collection of clauses, but as a holistic document written to establish republican government under the rule of law…A Constitution that would allow the president to break the law …becomes the author of its own demise.”

Trump Cannot Be the End of the Story www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Explore this gift article from The New York Times. You can read it for free without a subscription. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Wow, @jamellebouie.net , so much of this is 🔥🔥🔥!! Like this! This is exactly what I want to see! No, your pardon is invalid, we're nixing all that shit! www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

I read @jamellebouie.net's NYT column every week, and I usually finish this ritual by saying a prayer that everyone with any political power on the left is also reading it. I've never prayed harder for that after reading this one. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o... J. Bouie: It matters a great deal then that Trump does not see himself as a steward of a democracy. The country, to him, is little more than a large & lucrative piece of real estate. Bouie views DJT's plan to whiten the USA as his way to inflate its value.

www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Thank you @jamellebouie.net www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Explore this gift article from The New York Times. You can read it for free without a subscription. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

I agree with @jamellebouie.net www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

The Rule of Law Is for Suckers (Jamelle Bouie/New York Times) Main Link | memeorandum Permalink

Trump Cannot Be the End of the Story www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

"There is a word for a system where the chief executive is outside the law and can use the force of the state against his enemies without any real obstacle, a word that was very much on the minds of the framers of the Constitution: tyranny." www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

There is a word for a system where the chief executive is outside the law&can use the force of the state against his enemies without any real obstacle,a word very much on the minds of the framers of the Constitution:tyranny Trump Cannot Be the End of the Story www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Explore this gift article from The New York Times. You can read it for free without a subscription. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Explore this gift article from The New York Times. You can read it for free without a subscription. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

According to Trump, the Rule of Law Is for Suckers. He has no use for pretense, & he’s not interested in playing along. Jamelle Bouie www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Gift Article. Good opinion piece by @jamellebouie.net on the need for accountability. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Kamala needs to read this piece by @jamellebouie.net www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

A faux-originalist, SCOTUS MAGA Gang intent on Unitary Executive BS does not give a damn about what Founders actually wrote. With their blessing & promise of immunity, they have loosed a psychopath to commit crimes & pardon all his fellow criminals. Democrats & harmed citizens have options. Bouie:

Trump Cannot Be the End of the Story www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o.... He is Lawless and Anti American.

“But good government, now or in the future, is impossible without accountability.”

The Rule of Law Is for Suckers www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

"good government, now or in the future, is impossible without accountability. To set that aside is to condemn the United States to another national exercise in corruption and authoritarian rule."

www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Trump Cannot Be the End of the Story www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

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Bouie’s column infuriating me once again. The SCOTUS method of reading the constitution via cheat codes. Something either IS the foundation of government legitimacy or it isn’t. Yes, one can deny it. But not SCOTUS Justices. They made a self-defeating constitution! www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Explore this gift article from The New York Times. You can read it for free without a subscription. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Jamelle Bouie lays out this president's attack on the rule of law and how a Democratic Congress might handle it. Make him 'a blip in the history of American democracy and not the opening act of its demise." www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

We must hold these criminals accountable! Trump Cannot Be the End of the Story www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Trump Cannot Be the End of the Story www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o... This is an outstanding argument for why and how to hold the administration accountable to preserve our democracy.

🎁🔗: Trump Cannot Be the End of the Story h/t @fuckcancer56.bsky.social www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

As always, A great column by @jamellebouie.net . Maybe more important than most. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

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Accountability and Democracy go hand in hand: Trump Cannot Be the End of the Story www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Explore this gift article from The New York Times. You can read it for free without a subscription. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o... "..Trump..is not the first president to disregard the law...But he may be the first president to abandon the pretense that the law matters at all."

tl;dr Our job is to make him a blip in the history of American democracy and not the opening act of its demise. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

💯 Laws have to mean something for those at the top or else they are meaningless for the rest. Or at least that's how it should be.

I hadn't really thought of this, but apparently Trump has. Thank you Supreme Court...😡 "To grant the president criminal immunity on top of his plenary power to pardon is, in effect, to extend the zone of lawlessness to the entire executive branch." www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

“I want good government, too. But good government, now or in the future, is impossible without accountability.”

Inspired foresightful strategizing here. Thank you, Mr. Bouie. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

I admire how Jamelle Bouie always goes to our history and founding texts. A real “originalist”! I’d only add to his great easy that we need to come up with some way to get the Supreme Court under control. Congress could limit its jurisdiction, maybe start there. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

"To grant the president criminal immunity on top of his plenary power to pardon is, in effect, to extend the zone of lawlessness to the entire executive branch." www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Trump Cannot Be the End of the Story www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

"Trump has no use for pretense, and he’s not interested in playing along. He thinks he is a law unto himself; that he holds sovereign authority over the entire country; that he can rule by decree and punish those who resist"

www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

"A more ambitious move would be to introduce a constitutional amendment limiting the scope of the pardon power. This would not work retroactively, but it would restrain future presidents." www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Trump Cannot Be the End of the Story www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o... Jamelle Bouie "..maxim in British gov't the king can do no wrong; he is not amenable to the courts of justice, the law has not provided any punishment for his misconduct..president of US will be liable to be impeached by the reps of the people, tried for his crimes”⬇️

@boltsmag.org www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o... Jamelle Bouie “..a maxim in British gov't the king can do no wrong; he is not amenable to the courts of justice..law has not provided any punishment for his misconduct..the president of the US will be liable to be impeached ..& tried for his crimes”

Important words from Jamelle Bouie: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/opinion/trump-law-lawlessness-presidency-congress.html?unlocked_article_code=1.MVE.SDgk._0rnQMc3r2Nw&smid=url-share

Trump Cannot Be the End of the Story www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o... This could be one of Jamelle’s most prescient observations and could not have been written at a better time. Congress, as well as the American people need to nip this in the bud ASAP!

Trump Cannot Be the End of the Story www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

“But good government, now or in the future, is impossible without accountability. To set that aside is to condemn the United States to another national exercise in corruption and authoritarian rule.” @jamellebouie.net 💯 www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...

Jamelle Bouie on if DJT should pardon himself and others: "Democrats should treat those pardons as null, void and illegitimate on their face in light of what the Constitution implies about the limits of the pardon power — and of presidential power itself." A must-do. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/o...