Donald J. Trump and the Law

Session Submission Type: Full Paper Panel

Session Description

The Trump presidency can be attributed at least in part to rising populist anger with established political elites. The first two years of Trump’s term have also challenged established notions of the rule of law, as the president has governed under the shadow of a special counsel investigation into whether he or his associates broke any laws through their contact with Russian agents. Among the legal questions raised or touched upon by the investigation are: the range of the president’s ability to exercise executive privilege; whether a president may be indicted or prosecuted while in office; the powers enjoyed by the special counsel; the appropriate role of the solicitor general and the White House counsel; and whether a president may be subject to lawsuits after departing the presidency.

In this panel, contributors will place these questions into their proper context by identifying how (or whether) any of these events are unique to the Trump administration, and what the likely long-term consequences might be for the president and his successors.

Sub Unit

• DIVISION 23: Presidents and Executive Politics

Individual Presentations

• “Witch Hunts” and the Rule of Law: Trump, The Special Counsel, and the DOJ - Katy J. Harriger, Wake Forest University

• Serving Law or Politics: How Government Lawyers Navigate a Trump Legal Landscape - Nancy Kassop, SUNY New Paltz

• Trump, Defamation, and Incitement - William G. Weaver, University of Texas at El Paso

• Executive Privilege in the Trump Presidency - Mark J. Rozell, George Mason University; Mitchel A. Sollenberger, University of Michigan, Dearborn

Chair

• Jeffrey Crouch American University

Discussant

• Mark E. Rush Washington and Lee