Monday’s U.S. Supreme Court decision granting the presumption of criminal immunity for official actions taken by a president fundamentally altered U.S. democracy, President Joe Biden said from the White House Monday evening.

Speaking for less than five minutes, Biden said the 6-3 decision contradicted the spirit of the country’s founding — set to be celebrated nationwide this week on the Fourth of July — that no one is above the law.

Presidential immunity extends to some official acts, Supreme Court rules in Trump case

“This nation was founded on the principle that there are no kings in America,” Biden said. “Each of us is equal before the law. No one — no one — is above the law, not even the president of the United States.”

The immunity decision, written by Chief Justice John Roberts for the court’s conservative majority, undermined that principle, Biden said.

Biden added that the decision would almost certainly mean a jury would not decide the criminal case accusing former President Donald Trump of conspiring to illegally overturn his 2020 loss before November’s election, which Biden called a “disservice to the American people.”

Roberts opinion

The ruling tasked a federal trial court with determining which actions then-President Trump took seeking to overturn the 2020 presidential election were conducted as “official” acts of the president. Those actions are entitled to “the presumption of immunity,” Roberts wrote.

The ruling protected the power of an office that itself makes up an entire branch of government, Roberts said, and was consistent with the constitutional framers’ view that the president has broad powers and responsibilities.

“Accounting for that reality — and ensuring that the President may exercise those powers forcefully, as the Framers anticipated he would — does not place him above the law,” Roberts wrote. “It preserves the basic structure of the Constitution.”

But Biden called the decision “a dangerous precedent” that would give presidents nearly unrestrained power.

“The power of the president will no longer be constrained by the law, even by the Supreme Court of the United States,” he said. “The only limits will be self-imposed by the president alone.”

Biden invoked the example of George Washington, who he said restrained the power of the presidency, and pledged he would continue to “respect the limits of the presidential powers.”

But, he said, the ruling empowered future presidents, possibly including Trump, to ignore the law.

Jan. 6 attack

Biden said Trump was responsible for the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol that disrupted the certification of Biden’s defeat of Trump in the 2020 election. Trump’s efforts to undermine the election results, culminating in the Jan. 6 attack, are the subject of the federal indictment the former president challenged by asserting presidential immunity.

“Four years ago, my predecessor sent a violent mob to the U.S. Capitol to stop the peaceful transfer of power,” Biden said. “We all saw with our own eyes. We saw what happened that day … I think it’s fair to say it’s one of the darkest days in U.S. history. Now, the man who sent that mob to the U.S. Capitol is facing potential criminal conviction.”

Biden, whose reelection campaign was still reeling Monday from a debate performance against Trump last week described even by Democrats as poor, called on voters to “do what the court should have been willing to do but would not,” and reject Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee for president, at the ballot box.

The president endorsed Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s forceful dissent in the case, quoting her phrase that the majority opinion fueled “fear for our democracy” and urging voters, too, to dissent.

NEWPORT — Three of the state’s emissaries to the golf world came home this weekend. 

Billy Andrade, Brad Faxon and Brett Quigley all spent the last few days on the grounds at Newport Country Club. Andrade and Quigley both played in the U.S. Senior Open and made the cut. Faxon served as lead analyst for the NBC coverage and was in the booth alongside the 18th green. 

More: The Newport Country Club could not have put on a better showing for the state of Rhode Island

More: Richard Bland wins US Senior Open in dramatic finish at Newport Country Club

It made for some nostalgia on a gorgeous Monday morning here. Sunday’s storms gave way to bright sunshine and an ideal summer day. Andrade finished his tournament at even par and Quigley checked in at 2-over. That’s a long way down the road from playing junior golf together in the 1980s. 

“Simply amazing,” Andrade said. “Everything that I imagined. It was just an unbelievable course, setting. Rhode Island, Newport — it just makes me feel very proud.” 

“Just an incredible week,” Quigley said. “The show coming to town here and coming to Rhode Island was fantastic. I thought Rhode Island and the golf course showed incredibly well.” 

Andrade got up and down for par at the 18th, pitching onto the green from about 50 yards and coaxing home a quick downhill putt. He qualified for this tournament thanks to his place on last year’s PGA Tour Champions money list, and his appearance here kicked off three straight weeks at his Bristol home. Andrade has played in the Walker Cup, at the Masters, in 18 editions of The Players Championship but none of his previous weeks were like this one. 

“It’s pretty cool,” Andrade said. “At 60 years old I’ve been doing this my whole adult life. To have a tournament like this at this stage of my career is real special.” 

Andrade came firing out of the gates with a 6-under 64 before the venue showed its teeth. Only 30 players broke par here this week, and only 20 finished within 10 shots of the pace set by winner Richard Bland and runner-up Hiroyuki Fujita. Varying winds and the rolling seaside landscape proved a challenge all the way into a dramatic finale. 

“I think this golf course stacked up great,” Andrade said. “I haven’t heard one complaint from one player, and that’s odd. Usually there’s somebody who’s not happy.  

“I think it would be awesome to come back here.” 

Quigley shot par or better in each of his first three rounds before closing with a 74. A pair of bogeys in the challenging morning conditions cost him a higher finish, including into the wind at the uphill par-4 18th. The majority of the field that finished on this extra day needed something more than an iron approach to have a chance of reaching the putting surface. 

“It has to (come back), it absolutely has to,” Quigley said. “I think it showed well. I think the USGA had a great championship.” 

Quigley has won tournaments as far away as Morocco and posted top-10 finishes at each of his last two PGA Tour Champions majors in 2023. He planned to visit the beach with his family later on Monday and will remain on vacation away from his Florida home for a few days. Quigley played in the group behind Andrade during his fourth round and was stealing a glance or two at his old friend throughout both days. 

“We were kind of looking at each other and smiling,” Quigley said. “Just thrilled to be part of the whole thing.” 

Newport hosted the U.S. Women’s Open in 2006 and waited 18 years to stage its next USGA event. It was the 1,001st for the organization — the first was the U.S. Amateur in 1895. Senior Open locations are currently booked through Spyglass Hill in 2030, but the USGA has openings to fill in 2031, 2033-37 and 2039-41. 

bkoch@providencejournal.com

On X: @BillKoch25 

Now he’s taking his talents to Rhode Island College thanks to winning the Rhode Island PBS Scholarship from the Rhode Island Foundation, which provides up to $60,000 (over four years) to students who want to pursue some form of journalism in college. Yean was selected from 27 applicants this year.

I asked him to tell us more about his high school experience and his dreams of becoming a sports broadcaster.

Q: This scholarship is going to help you pursue your dream to become a sports broadcaster. When did you decide you wanted to get involved in sports journalism?

Yean: I wanted to delve into sports broadcasting during the middle of eighth grade, following a math problem in my eighth grade algebra class writing a tortoise-and-hare-like story. The teacher liked my story, which sparked my interest in joining the sports journalism industry. It wasn’t until my freshman year of high school that I joined Thunderbolt Sports Media and quickly became involved in broadcasts with my mentor, Mo Holtzman. Those experiences, along with the guidance of my club advisor and dear friend, Mr. Ken Simone, prompted me to go further into the industry and pursue my dreams of being involved in sports.

Q: You were the Student Council president at Cranston East and also the lead play-by-play announcer for many of the school’s athletic teams. What do you love most about calling games?

Yean: Commentating mainly high school sports, and being a (now former) high school student myself, getting to know these athletes off the field and in the classroom too is a one-of-a-kind thing you rarely see at higher levels of sports. I was able to meet so many awesome people through commentating, being able to get to know them, and build some great relationships. The people I worked with on my broadcasts as well are also fantastic people to be around. It’s the connections with other people that make what I do, at least at this level, worth it. 

Q: You’re heading to Rhode Island College in the fall. What does the Rhode Island PBS Scholarship mean for you?

Yean: Being able to go to college without much financial worry through the Rhode Island PBS Scholarship is the biggest blessing I could ever ask for. To have the last four years of hard work rewarded through a massive scholarship such as this feels amazing – there’s really no other reaction that I could have now. But I’m really glad that my mom and dad don’t have to worry so much about paying for my college education anymore. They’ve already done so much for me, and I’m grateful for them being in my life.

Q: The media has changed so much in recent years. What’s something older readers (and journalists) should know about your generation?

Yean: Social media has transformed how we take in our info. Lots of people my age take in their sports news through video content rather than reading articles. Especially on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, etc, it’s quick and easy information to take in and instantly react to it. For example, Eric Rueb from the Providence Journal does a lot of video content on Instagram, and I and many people know and love him from that. It’s an interesting time for not just sports journalism, but journalism overall in terms of how journalists and news companies adapt to how people like to take in their news.

Q: Last question: How the heck did you become a Miami Heat fan?

Yean: My father’s been a Miami Heat fan since they became a team, so I followed in his footsteps, so a pretty easy come-up as a Heat fan. I’m unfortunately a speck of red in a sea of Celtic green, so I’ve had too many arguments with my friends to try and recount all of them. Their Finals’ win this year does not help my case, although I’m sure Jimmy Butler and crew will find a way to avenge this year’s embarrassment of a season. I’m a die-hard Patriots fan though, so hopefully it makes up for it in some way for my fellow New Englanders.

This story first appeared in Rhode Map, our free newsletter about Rhode Island that also contains information about local events, links to interesting stories, and more. If you’d like to receive it via e-mail Monday through Friday, you can sign up here.

Dan McGowan can be reached at dan.mcgowan@globe.com. Follow him @danmcgowan.