Justice Alito Questions Whether Prosecuting Presidents Would Undermine the Government

His comment was made as U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in former President Trump’s immunity case.

Justices of the U.S. Supreme Court pose for their official photo at the Supreme Court in Washington on Oct. 7, 2022. (Front L–R) Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Clarence Thomas, Chief Justice John Roberts, Justices Samuel Alito and Justice Elena Kagan. (Back L–R) Justices Amy Coney Barrett, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Ketanji Brown Jackson. Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito on Thursday questioned whether prosecuting former presidents may undermine the county’s governance during a hearing on former President Donald Trump’s presidential immunity case.

President Trump’s lawyers have argued that former presidents are entitled to absolute immunity for their official acts. Otherwise, they say, politically motivated prosecutions of former occupants of the Oval Office would become routine and presidents couldn’t function as the commander-in-chief if they had to worry about criminal charges.