Which Responsibility Standard Should Apply To Presidents: Negligence Or Strict Liability?
Should Presidents be blamed for every bad thing that happens during their term or only be blamed for things they actually did wrong?
David Grace (Amazon Page — David Grace Website)
By Default, The Law Applies Fault-Based Liability
With a few exceptions, the Law is concerned with negligence, with damage caused by fault.
Did you carelessly do something that injured others? If so, then you have Fault-Based Liability and you’re responsible for the damage. If not, then you aren’t
For example, if you’re allergic to bee stings and one flies into your car, stings you, and while you’re in shock your car crashes into someone, then under fault-based liability you are not liable for the damage suffered by the innocent person you ran into because the crash wasn’t caused by something you did wrong.
Because the crash was beyond your reasonable control, you have no liability based on fault.
But not everyone agrees with the idea of liability being based on fault.
Strict Liability
I have a friend whose mother’s position was that the car was her husband’s domain so if a nail punctured a tire or the fuel pump suddenly failed then all the resulting problems were automatically his fault. Strict liability.
Some boards of directors hold the CEO responsible for any major loss the company suffers no matter what the cause. If an earthquake destroys the factory then they fire the CEO. Strict liability.
Should Strict Liability Apply To Presidents?
Some Americans think that Strict Liability applies to Presidents. Covid closed factories and wrecked the supply chain which massively lowered the supply of crucial products which product shortages, in turn, caused an increase in prices.
For these people, Biden is to blame for the ensuing inflation. Strict liability
The Russians invaded Ukraine which lead to a grain shortage and an international rise in the price of food. They think that inflation is Biden’s fault. Strict liability.
Covid decimated computer chip production. The shortage of chips crippled auto production. The shortage of new cars caused an increase in the price of both new and used vehicles. They think that inflation is Biden’s fault. Strict liability.
Some manufacturers saw consumers as a captive population and opportunistically raised their prices under the guise of supply chain issues. They think that inflation is Biden’s fault. Strict liability.
But If Biden Is Strictly Liable, Then So Is Trump
So, if you are one of those Strict Liability people who think Biden should be blamed for the inflation caused by covid and the Russian attack on Ukraine, OK, but then you have to also apply that same strict-liability policy to Trump.
- When did covid start? On Trump’s watch.
- When did many businesses go broke because of covid? During Trump’s term.
- When did all those Americans begin dying from covid? During Trump’s term.
- When did the supply chain fail? During Trump’s term.
- When did the ports become gridlocked. During Trump’s term.
- When did the hospitals become overwhelmed? During Trump’s term.
If you want to blame Biden for the inflation that was caused by covid, by the supply chain failures, by the gridlocked ports, by the chip shortage, by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, by the greedy businesses that raised prices just because they could, then your blame needs to include the guy who was President when covid started. Trump.
And by the way, you also need to blame Trump for every hurricane, earthquake, flood and forest fire that happened while he was President. Strict liability.
Wait, Now You Don’t Want To Apply Strict Liability To Trump?
What? You don’t think that Trump should be blamed for all the deaths and suffering and economic catastrophes that covid and natural disasters caused during his term in office?
You don’t believe that Trump should be found unfit to serve under your theory of Strict Liability?
Then similarly you can’t blame Biden for the covid-caused inflation during his term in office.
Either Trump and Biden are both strictly liable for every bad thing that happened during their terms in office or neither is.
Magic Laws?
And if you want to claim that Biden was somehow at fault for not stopping that inflation, that he could have proposed some magic law that the Republicans in Congress would have actually voted for that would have stopped the inflation caused by the supply chain wreckage, the Ukraine invasion, the gridlocked ports and the greedy corporations, then tell us the genius plan that Biden could have gotten through Congress that would have eliminated the covid-caused inflation.
Inquiring minds want to know.
— David Grace (Amazon Page — David Grace Website)
