edit: I have changed my title to match the new NYTimes headline. Sorry about the all caps, I guess they are really excited about this lol
Also shoutout to @SayJess@lemmy.blahaj.zone who shared a gift article link in the comments. I hope you don’t mind but I kinda stole it and updated the post
This is going to give a lot of GOP Senators a fig leaf.
If someone puts a motion in Congress to make it illegal for him to run, a lot of them will vote for it.
I absolutely do not want a ban on felons running for President. In some countries, that is used as a political tool to eliminate political opponents. Putin used that against Navalny.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-42479909
Not to mention, Trump won’t even be the first person in the USA who could be running for president from jail.
edit: the first from a major party though, sorry Debs
His felonies are related to campaing financing, which could be used to narrow down without banning all felons. While I oppose anyone losing the right to vote, I don’t oppose people who are connvicted of treason, insurrection, or felonies related to campaign finance or abuse of elected positions being banned since they have been proven to have undermined democracy.
I get allowing former felons to run for office - they served time that society said was their punishment. They are done with it.
But a law that bans a felon that has not completed their punishment is a different story.
We’ve banned them from voting for decades.
Also, the USA isn’t Russia and Biden isn’t Putin.
Not running, though. Much harder to use that to eliminate a political opponent.
No. But I’d also like to keep it that way.
Then keep Donald out.
This was not the first time Trump has had a run in with the law. When he was building Trump Tower he employed Polish immigrants and treated them so badly that they won a million dollar settlement against him
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/donald-trump-undocumented-polish-workers-tower-paid-settlement-millions-bonwit-teller-building-new-york-a8080336.html
All the more reason for the Republicans to support it, TBH.
How do you propose such a bill be advanced through the GOP controlled house?
bad law. I’d much rather a law where the candidate has to describe the nature of their past convictions in a written statement submitted with their filing paperwork to run and explain why each one doesn’t affect their ability to run the country.
Aka reflecting on one’s crimes.