Is the Speaker of the House immune from prosecution,

[RipVanWinkle]

similar to POTUS? I haven’t done any research on this.

I have a sneaky suspicion Trump wants to be SOTH so that he can delay all of his court cases.

[Recycle_Guru]

1. no

[struggle4progress]

2. I expect "Too busy with my job as Speaker for this lawsuit" would meet

"Tough nuggets, there! Just resign!"

[LonePirate]

3. The Speaker can say whatever he wants while on the House floor or committee like attacking witnesses

Essentially he can go after the judges, the prosecutors, jurors or witnesses of any of his trials. He could disclose state secrets just like he was entertaining guests at MAL. He is constitutionally protected from prosecution and penalties from his trial judges if he were to do any of those things.

[Johonny]

5. I assume, they could use his statements against him

For other crimes already under prosecution.

[Ocelot II]

6. He's not immune from the 91 felonies he's *already* (allegedly) committed. And:

the Speech or Debate Clause (assuming it even applies to a non-member Speaker) says: "They shall in all Cases, except Treason, Felony and Breach of the Peace, be privileged from Arrest during their Attendance at the Session of their respective Houses, and in going to and returning from the same; and for any Speech or Debate in either House, they shall not be questioned in any other Place."

Political or other nonlegislative acts . . . are not protected by the Clause and therefore may serve as the basis for a legal action. The cases suggest at least three noteworthy themes. First, despite the text, the protections afforded by the Clause extend well beyond speeches or debates undertaken by Senators and Representatives. Second, otherwise legitimate political interactions external to the legislative sphere—for example, disseminating information outside of Congress—are generally not considered protected legislative acts. Third, the Clause does not immunize criminal conduct that is clearly not part of the due functioning of the legislative process. https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/essay/artI-S6-C1-3-3/ALDE_00013302/

[Wonder Why]

7. I think you are wrong in that. He is not (or wouldn't be) a Senator or Representative so

would not qualify under the Constitution in my reading of it. Can you cite your evidence?

[LonePirate]

13. There is no constitutional requirement to be a member of the House in order to be Speaker.

It's why his name is being floated for the Speakership.

Also, the Speech and Debate Clause from the Constitution grants a literal free speech pass while House members are working in the Capitol. It was cited upthread. He can't murder someone; but he can give speeches all day long where he can scream at the clouds or seek verbal vengeance against anyone he chooses and nothing can be done about it. He can still be tried and convicted for the various crimes for which he is already charged; but gag orders are powerless against him if he is voted to be Speaker.

That being said, there are very likely enough moderate Republicans that would vote for someone else in order to deny him the majority needed to be chosen. They know a public vote for him would tank their chances for re-election in November 2024.

[Wonder Why]

14. Becoming speaker is not the issue. Being charged with Contempt of Court and jailed for it

can be the result of attacking witnesses, judges, courts and prosecutors and their staff.

He can also be charged and jailed for any crime he commits or has committed.

[LonePirate]

15. He is responsible for his current indictments but he can attack his judges all day in the House.

The Constitution overrules any contempt charges so he can call Chutkan a corrupt moron every day and nothing can be done about it if he does it in the House while serving as Speaker.

[Wonder Why]

16. Where do you see that in the Constitution?

[LonePirate]

18. Article I, Section 6, Clause 1:

The Senators and Representatives shall receive a Compensation for their Services, to be ascertained by Law, and paid out of the Treasury of the United States. They shall in all Cases, except Treason, Felony and Breach of the Peace, be privileged from Arrest during their Attendance at the Session of their respective Houses, and in going to and returning from the same; and for any Speech or Debate in either House, they shall not be questioned in any other Place.

[Wonder Why]

19. Except that Donnie is neither a Senator nor a Representative so he is NOT protected.

And who else would you be referring to with this comment:

Essentially he can go after the judges, the prosecutors, jurors or witnesses of any of his trials. He could disclose state secrets just like he was entertaining guests at MAL.

[RipVanWinkle]

21. Prosecutors could challenge such behavior in the courts and

the Supreme Court could rule in their favor.

However, I'm not holding my breath on a Supreme Court decision limiting Trump's behavior.

[Elessar Zappa]

9. He's still going to be held accountable for his crimes that he's under indictment for.

But I have my doubts that he’d be elected Speaker.

[Ocelot II]

4. No.

He doesn't want to be Speaker; that's work. He wants to get attention for talking about wanting to be Speaker.

[NowsTheTime]

22. You think he would work??? Have never seen that.

[magicarpet]

8. If trDump somehow became Speaker of the House,..

... does that automatically make him a member of the House or is he considered just a citizen who also happens to be Speaker? But not a member of the House because he was never elected in a House district by the citizens of that district or any district for that matter.

Of course what trDump and team MAGA are doing by toying with the idea of the Orange Menace being Speaker of the House is is craftfully flooding the zone with raw sewerage being spewed full blast from a firehose to create,a diversion of trDump's 91 felony counts of civil and criminal litigation filed against him.

■○■○■○■○

Speech and debate clause protects Congress members from lawsuits over legislative speech. The general purpose of the speech and debate clause is to protect members of Congress from having to worry that anything they say in the course of legislative activities will implicate them in a lawsuit.

■○■○■○■○

Cornell Law School:

ArtI.S6.C1.1.3 Speech and Debate Privilege
Article I, Section 6, Clause 1:

The Senators and Representatives shall receive a Compensation for their Services, to be ascertained by Law, and paid out of the Treasury of the United States. They shall in all Cases, except Treason, Felony and Breach of the Peace, be privileged from Arrest during their Attendance at the Session of their respective Houses, and in going to and returning from the same; and for any Speech or Debate in either House, they shall not be questioned in any other Place.

Members
This clause represents “the culmination of a long struggle for parliamentary supremacy. Behind these simple phrases lies a history of conflict between the Commons and the Tudor and Stuart monarchs during which successive monarchs utilized the criminal and civil law to suppress and intimidate critical legislators. Since the Glorious Revolution in Britain, and throughout United States history, the privilege has been recognized as an important protection of the independence and integrity of the legislature.” 1 So Justice Harlan explained the significance of the Speech or Debate Clause, the ancestry of which traces back to a clause in the English Bill of Rights of 16892 and the history of which traces back almost to the beginning of the development of Parliament as an independent force.3 “In the American governmental structure the clause serves the additional function of reinforcing the separation of powers so deliberately established by the Founders.” 4 “The immunities of the Speech or Debate Clause were not written into the Constitution simply for the personal or private benefit of Members of Congress, but to protect the integrity of the legislative process by insuring the independence of individual legislators.

More at link below,

https://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution-conan/article-1/section-6/clause-1/speech-and-debate-privilege

[onenote]

17. If he became speaker (and it won't happen ), he isn't a member of Congress

He doesn't get to vote on anything. He isn't covered by the Speech and Debate clause.

[Emile]

10. Dennis Hastert convicted felon and sex offender.

[Marius25]

11. No, and Presidents aren't immune from prosecution either.

Absolutely nothing in the Constitution or case law says they can't be prosecuted. The only reason they typically aren't, is because the DoJ wrote a stupid memo saying the DoJ won't do it under Nixon to prevent Spiro Agnew from becoming president.

[Sogo]

12. His utter incompetence would be on display.

And, if he claims his trials are interferring with campaigning, how does he think the huge responsibility as Speaker ON TOP OF ALL HIS TRIALS would leave him time for campaigning? Just another con and ego stroke for the Orange Menace....

[inthewind21]

20. No

And if you are under felony indictment, you can't be speaker.