From the BBC:
“Donald Trump does not have
presidential immunity, US court rules”
Donald Trump does not have
presidential immunity and can be prosecuted on charges of plotting to overturn
the 2020 election, a US court has ruled. Mr Trump had claimed in the landmark
legal case that he was immune from criminal charges for acts he said fell
within his duties as president. But Tuesday's unanimous ruling in Washington DC
struck down that claim. It is a setback for Mr Trump who has for years cited
presidential immunity while battling multiple cases. "We cannot accept
former President Trump's claim that a president has unbounded authority to
commit crimes that would neutralise the most fundamental check on executive
power - the recognition and implementation of election results," the
three-judge appeals court panel wrote in its opinion. It added: "For the
purpose of this criminal case, former President Trump has become citizen Trump,
with all of the defences of any other criminal defendant."
In a statement shortly after the
ruling, Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said the former president
"respectfully disagrees with the DC Circuit's decision and will appeal
it". If an appeal is filed, the case could ultimately go to the Supreme
Court where conservatives hold a 6-3 majority. Mr Trump has until 12 February
to do so. "If immunity is not granted to a president, every future
president who leaves office will be immediately indicted by the opposing
party," Mr Cheung said. "Without complete immunity, a president of
the United States would not be able to properly function."
US Special Counsel Jack Smith has
charged Mr Trump, 77, with conspiring to overturn Joe Biden's victory in the
2020 election and committing fraud to stay in office. The trial in that case
was initially scheduled for 4 March, but was postponed pending a ruling on the
immunity claim. It could be delayed for weeks, if not months, if the case ends
up before the Supreme Court. Last month, a panel of three judges heard the case
at the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit. The argument from Mr Trump's
lawyer hinged on the idea that a president who is not convicted for impeachment
by Congress cannot be subject to criminal proceedings. Mr Trump, they noted,
was impeached by the House of Representatives but never convicted by the
Senate. The judge presiding over the trial had already rejected this argument
in December. Judge Tanya Chutkan wrote at the time that the presidency
"does not confer a lifelong 'get-out-of-jail-free' pass". At the
hearing, the judges - two Democratic appointees and one Republican appointee -
were sceptical of the former president's argument. One, Judge Florence Pan,
suggested that immunity would allow a president to sell state secrets or order
the assassination of a political rival without being concerned about criminal
prosecution.
^ Even President Nixon in the
1970s knew you couldn’t do everything you wanted (especially illegal things) and
claim Presidential Immunity. That’s why Nixon resigned and had the next
President (his Former Vice President) Pardon him on everything.
Trump should have done that
before he left the office in 2021. Now he has to wait and see what the US
Supreme Court says - hopefully they side
with the Constitution and not give him Carte Blanche Immunity. ^
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