“he most certainly can be prosecuted and removed from office”
No, he MUST be impeached first. Breaking this law may be grounds for impeachment, but you are talking as if immediate prosecution can replace impeachment. It can’t.
“several red state Governors could band together and bring suit”
They could, but they can’t remove him from office. Only Congress can: the house through impeachment and the senate by trial and conviction.
No, he MUST be impeached first. Breaking this law may be grounds for impeachment, but you are talking as if immediate prosecution can replace impeachment. It can’t.
You're not reading the wording of the statute. Here it is, and it is quite clear:
§1341 states:
1) An officer or employee of the United States Government or of the District of Columbia government may not-
(A) make or authorize an expenditure or obligation exceeding an amount available in an appropriation or fund for the expenditure or obligation;
(B) involve either government in a contract or obligation for the payment of money before an appropriation is made unless authorized by law;
§1342 specifies that the "unless authorized by law" exception in 1341 (1)(B) applies only to "emergencies involving the safety of human life or the protection of property," which does "not include ongoing, regular functions of government the suspension of which would not imminently threaten the safety of human life or the protection of property."
§1349 states:
"An officer or employee of the United States Government or of the District of Columbia government violating section 1341(a) or 1342 of this title shall be subject to appropriate administrative discipline including, when circumstances warrant, suspension from duty without pay or removal from office."
§1350 states:
"An officer or employee of the United States Government or of the District of Columbia government knowingly and willfully violating section 1341(a) or 1342 of this title shall be fined not more than $5,000, imprisoned for not more than 2 years, or both."