Darth Hideous

Trump is looking to suspect habeas corpus

The Trump regime is openly talking about suspending habeas corpus without the approval of Congress. This is the right to see a judge, challenge the government’s evidence against them, and present a defense if you are detained in the United States.

Why would the regime not want you to have that right?

White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen “Baby Goebbels” Miller told reporters while hanging upside-down by his feet from a ceiling, “That's an option we're actively looking at.”

If Baby Goebbels is looking at it, then you know it’s the wrong idea.

Article 1 of the Constitution states, “the Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it.”

Senator Chris Murphy said at a Democratic rally in Sarasota, Florida, “The one power you cannot give the executive is the power to arbitrarily imprison people who oppose the regime. Today, it may be an El Salvadorian immigrant or a foreign student, but tomorrow it is you or me. The slope to despotism can be slippery and quick.”

On April 30, Trump said, “There are ways to mitigate it and there’s some very strong ways. There’s one way that’s been used by three very highly respected presidents, but we hope we don’t have to go that route.”

Trump is NOT a highly respected president.

Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson suspended habeas corpus during and after the Civil War. Andrew Johnson, like Donald Trump, is not a highly respected president. In fact, he’s on the same list of worst presidents with Trump.

Theodore Roosevelt suspended it in two provinces in the Philippines during a 1905 rebellion. His cousin, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, suspended it in Hawaii after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

The Supreme Court and several federal judges have recently ruled that anyone detained in the U.S., including migrants, has the right to appear before a judge and present their defense.

In his remarks on Friday, Miller referred to the judges responsible as “a handful of Marxist judges” carrying out “a judicial coup.” He warned that the administration’s decision to suspend habeas corpus unilaterally would depend on whether the courts “do the right thing.”

For Trump and Miller, the “right thing” is for the courts to agree with them and let them do whatever they want, or they’ll torch the Constitution.

Ilya Somin, a law professor at George Mason University, said, “Habeas corpus can only be suspended under the Constitution in times of invasion or insurrection. None of that is happening now. And it can only be done by Congress, not the president acting on his own.”

Late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, a conservative icon, said that the power to suspend habeas corpus rests solely with Congress, and the executive branch cannot unilaterally round up Americans and hold them in “detention without charge,” even in times of rebellion.

Scalia wrote, “Where the Government accuses a citizen of waging war against it, our constitutional tradition has been to prosecute him in federal court for treason or some other crime. The Executive’s assertion of military exigency has not been thought sufficient to permit detention without charge.”

Professor Stephen Gillers, an expert on legal ethics at New York University Law School, said Trump and Miller are trying to discredit judges and maximize the power of the presidency.

“Denial of habeas corpus jurisdiction for immigrants is an attempt to do an end run around checks and balances,” Gillers said. “It is a way to sideline the courts and retain maximum power in the executive branch.”

Trump and Miller want Donald Trump to be a dictator. Other MAGAts argue that it’s OK to suspend habeas corpus, deport immigrants without checks and balances, detain people for their viewpoints and without being charged, and even deport those born in the US, because these people are the bad guys.

But it’s habeas corpus, due process, that determines if someone is the bad guy.

The bad guys are the ones trying to suspend habeas corpus and violate our Constitution.

In Episode Three, Revenge of the Sith, in Star Wars, Supreme Chancellor Palpatine says, “I am the Senate,” and it’s pointed out by Jedi Master Mace Windu that he controls the courts. In Episode Four, A New Hope, Palpatine, who is now Darth Sidious, the Sith Lord, has “dissolved” the Senate.

Before Palpatine becomes Emperor, he extends his term limit as Chancellor because it’s a time of war, and the Senate “asks” him to stay on. His powers are increased.

Grand Moff Tarkin explains on the Death Star that the Senate “is no longer a concern: and that “regional governors now have direct control over their territories.”

Your homework is to rewatch Star Wars, episodes one through six, and both seasons of Andor, which wraps up tomorrow night. This shit’s coming true.

Public WiFi note: I was going to write this in a reply to paid subscriber Joan, who sent me an email warning me about this (I love that you guys look out for me). Coffee shops across the country are limiting access to their WiFi, or killing it altogether. Joan was warning me because I draw while traveling.

This isn’t new, and I’ve already encountered this problem, and not just while traveling in the USA. I’ve discovered it here in Fredericksburg and Dublin.

Coffee shops are getting wise to people occupying their seats for hours while working or just surfing the internet. One way to discourage people from squatting in their cafes all day is to turn down the air system, limit the WiFi, or kill it altogether.

Hyperion is a local institution in downtown Fredericksburg, but they have killed their WiFi, which means I’m never going back. Some places give you a time limit, like 45 minutes or an hour, and won’t give you the new code unless you buy something else, and I think that’s acceptable. I dealt with this a couple of weeks ago in a Chicago Starbucks, where the WiFi time was limited, but this was on Michigan Avenue, where there were a lot of people (and also a Starbucks on every other block). I also dealt with the time-limit thing in New York City and Dublin. At the very least, I could buy another water after an hour, or you can get around it altogether by using your hotspot.

I’ve also noticed that some cafes in large cities, like NYC, Chicago, and Washington, DC, don’t have outlets in the dining areas, which is to discourage you from hanging out. Some shops in the cities don’t even have seats or tables…and if they do, there are very few. I challenge you to sit down at a Starbucks in Times Square.

What bothers me about this is that coffee shops used to install WiFi to attract customers, and now they’re like, we want your business, but get out after we get your money.

Creative note: I sat on this idea for about two hours before I decided it’s the one to go with. I never intended it to become an Easter egg hunt, but it did.

Making Trump’s face look like Darth Sidious was inspired by this photo I took of my TV this morning. Notice that it’s on mute.

Music note: I listened to Kings of Leon.

Drawn in 30 seconds:

Timelapse:

Support your local cartoonist: If you want to support the cartoonist, please donate through PayPal to clayjonz@gmail.com, Venmo to clay-jones-87, or snail mail it to Clay Jones, P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402. All support is appreciated.

Signed prints: Each signed print costs $40.00. Every cartoon at Claytoonz is available. Payment is accepted through PayPal, Venmo (clay-jones-87), or snail mail to Clay Jones, P.O. Box 3721, Fredericksburg, VA 22402. Add to the note what you’re purchasing.

Tales From The Trumpster Fire: Signed copies of my second book are $50 and available only through me. I currently have four copies in my personal stash. Add to the note what you’re purchasing.

Knee-Deep In Mississippi: There are only seven copies left of my first book, published in 1997. They can be purchased for $40.00. Add to the note what you're purchasing.