What Sunday School taught me about Trump

Let's talk about what the Bible would say about the president's firing of James Comey

President Trump.
(Image credit: AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

In the legal debate over whether President Trump could be charged with obstruction of justice for firing FBI Director James Comey, the rub appears to be about "corrupt intent." Trump's lawyer John Dowd, Harvard's Alan Dershowitz, and others argue that the president has the constitutional prerogative to fire an employee of the executive branch of government — full stop.

The counterargument is that the president is criminally liable for doing his job if he does so for nefarious reasons: "I have the right to shred my personal files, but if I destroy them because they've been subpoenaed by the grand jury it becomes obstruction," notes Randall D. Eliason of George Washington University Law School.

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Scott Galupo

Scott Galupo is a freelance writer living in Virginia. In addition to The Week, he blogs for U.S. News and reviews live music for The Washington Post. He was formerly a senior contributor to the American Conservative and staff writer for The Washington Times. He was also an aide to Rep. John Boehner. He lives with his wife and two children and writes about politics to support his guitar habit.