Supreme Court's Immunity Ruling Expands Presidential Power, Panel Says

The Supreme Court issued a ruling this week that dramatically expands the power of the presidency and helps protect Donald Trump from criminal prosecution, according to Washington Week With The Atlantic, a program that airs on PBS stations as a partnership between NewsHour Productions, WETA, and The Atlantic.

"What this Supreme Court has done, not just for the presidential power but for its own power, is big," said Joan Biskupic of CNN, speaking with Atlantic editor in chief and Washington Week moderator Jeffrey Goldberg. Biskupic added that the Court's "own power is also enhanced by the fact that it will be judges deciding what are official or unofficial acts."

Biskupic was joined on the program by Dan Balz of The Washington Post, Jan Crawford of CBS News, and Charlie Savage of The New York Times to discuss the ruling and its implications.

What the Panel Flagged

Biskupic's central point was that the ruling doesn't only affect the presidency — it also expands the judiciary's own authority, since courts will now be the ones deciding, case by case, what qualifies as an "official" act versus an "unofficial" one. That distinction, according to the panel discussion, sits at the center of how the ruling will be applied going forward.

The full discussion, including additional analysis from Balz, Crawford, and Savage, aired as part of Washington Week With The Atlantic's coverage of the ruling.