Retired Supreme Court Justice lowers the boom on Trump

Retired Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens said there's certainly a precedent for justices defying the president, and he hopes the current court remembers that in the coming showdown between the executive and legislative branches.

The 99-year-old Stevens, a Ford appointee, warned that President Donald Trump is claiming more authority than he has as chief executive, reported the Wall Street Journal.

“I think there are things we should be concerned about, there’s no doubt about that,” Stevens said, but declined to provide specifics. “The president is exercising powers that do not really belong to him. I mean, he has to comply with subpoenas and things like that.”

Two Trump appointees, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, sit on the Supreme Court and would resolve any disputes between the president and the Democratic House majority, but Stevens said the Constitution provides clear limits to executive authority.

“I wouldn’t want to predict that anybody’s going to take the incorrect view,” he said. “But certainly, the correct view is pretty clear.”