John Dean mocked for saying Nixon would've 'survived’ Watergate under SCOTUS' immunity ruling for Trump

John Dean mocked for saying Nixon ‘would have survived’ Watergate under SCOTUS' immunity ruling shielding Trump
John Dean said that former president Richard Nixon (C) ‘would have survived’ Watergate under the US Supreme Court's immunity ruling shielding Donald Trump (@JohnWDean/X and Getty Images)

WASHINGTON, DC: Former White House counsel for the Nixon administration John Dean stated that he thinks former president Richard Nixon "would have survived" the Watergate scandal had the Supreme Court's immunity ruling, issued on Monday, July 1, been in place at the time.

This ruling essentially protects former presidents from criminal prosecution for actions taken while in office, The Hill reported.

When asked what would have happened to Nixon in the wake of Watergate, Dean cited the opinion of Justice Amy Coney Barrett, who dissented from the other conservative justices on a portion of the majority ruling about the use of a former president's official acts as evidence in criminal prosecutions.

John Dean says Richard Nixon ‘would have survived’ Watergate under SC's immunity ruling 

John Dean said, "Well, there’s actually two rulings in this decision. There’s a 6-3 for presumptive immunity, but there’s also a 5-4 on you can’t even have the evidence of official conduct come to play."

He added, "This is very…this to me, appears to certainly influence the existing law on presidential conduct [and] what’s available…evidentiary speaking. Amy Coney Barrett said she didn’t think that it should be so restricted as the decision of the court itself was, so I think that Nixon would have survived. I think he would have walked under this ruling."

Richard Nixon resigned on August 8, 1974 (Getty Images)
A break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters, which was housed in the Watergate complex, led to the scandal surrounding Richard Nixon in 1972, which was known as Watergate (Getty Images)

Following ideological lines, the Supreme Court ruled 6-3 on Monday that presidents are "at least presumptively immune" from prosecution for any other official activities and have complete immunity for conduct that is within the purview of their office.

In his majority opinion, Chief Justice John Roberts decided that official actions taken by a former president cannot be used as evidence against them in a criminal prosecution.

WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 10: Former Chief White House Counsel John Dean (C) arrives to testify about the Mueller Report before the House Judiciary Committee in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill June 10, 2019 in Washington, DC. Dean, who went to prison for his role in the Watergate burglaries and subsequent cover-up, became a key witness for the investigation and ultimate resignation of President Richard Nixon in 1974. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
John Dean (ccenter said that there’s a 6-3 for presumptive immunity, but there’s also a 5-4 (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Barrett expressed her disagreement with this part of the verdict in a concurring opinion, writing. She said, "I disagree with that holding; on this score, I agree with the dissent… The Constitution does not require blinding juries to the circumstances surrounding conduct for which Presidents can be held liable."

Notably, a break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters, which was housed in the Watergate complex, led to the scandal surrounding Nixon in 1972, which was known as Watergate. The culprits behind the break-in were officials tasked with reelecting Nixon; several of them subsequently resigned and were found guilty of crimes connected to the cover-up.

John Dean slammed for his statement on SCOTUS' immunity ruling 

Internet users slammed John Dean as he stated that he thinks former president Richard Nixon "would have survived" the Watergate scandal had the Supreme Court's immunity ruling been in place at the time.

One social media user posted on X, "He obviously doesn't know history. Nixon was encouraged to resign, which he did," while one added, "Democrats are just butt hurt that the SC is hindering their lawfare election interference efforts."



 



 

One person stated, "Nixon resigned on his own terms," whereas one mentioned, "John Dean is a scandal grifter."



 



 

One individual asked, "Breaking and entering is a normal presidential duty?" while one added, "Yes because you used a cia asset to get rid of him."



 



 

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.

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