Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, May 24, 1994 TAG: 9405240065
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A-6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Paula Jones, you may know, filed a $700,000 lawsuit contending that Bill Clinton, as governor, made a sexual proposal that violated her civil rights and caused her emotional distress.
The apparent dilemma: On the one hand, if any president can be sued for anything, the presidency would soon be plagued and paralyzed with no end of harassing lawsuits, many of them partisan, most of them frivolous, and all of them wasting a president's time, energy and money while distracting him from his duties. The impact on lawyers' incomes, like so many legal developments of recent decades, would be beneficial. The impact on the presidency, and on national leadership, could be grave.
On the other hand, a crucial tenet of democracy is that individuals in government, including the president, are not above the law. Election to high office should not come with a fringe benefit of pardons for all past offenses.
The dilemma is only apparent because one legal option would protect both the dignity of the presidency and the rule of law.
The Supreme Court already has ruled, wisely, that presidents cannot be sued for official acts undertaken while they are in office. The courts now could extend this ban to civil suits alleging pre-presidential wrongdoing. And they could add a twist: Immunity ends once a president leaves office. This would serve Americans who otherwise might lose their right to seek justice if the perpetrator happens to win an election.
In some cases, a statute of limitations could be stretched out to account for the period of immunity. Of course, there should be no immunity for cases involving criminal wrongdoing.
Surely the courts could fashion a legal argument to support this solution. Indeed, whatever the merits of Jones' suit, her case is a good one for inspiring precedent. She has been urged on by legions of Clinton haters, and waited three years before filing her complaint. The courts should delay her proceedings until Clinton's presidency is ended - not for his sake, but for the institution's.
America's presidency needs protection from the excesses and abuses of our society's litigiousness. The rest of us need such protection, too - but that's another matter, not as easily addressed.
by CNB