(IntegrityPress.org) – In prosecuting former President Donald Trump for charges of attempting to overturn the 2020 presidential election, special counsel Jack Smith asked the Supreme Court on Monday, April 8, to reject Trump’s argument that he should be protected under presidential immunity.
Smith’s request came as part of a 66-page filing in which he stated that the law being applicable to everyone, even presidents, was a “bedrock” of the “constitutional order.” Trump has said previously that presidents are granted “absolute immunity” for any official act undertaken while in office. Smith, however, has argued that there is no historical precedent to Trump’s argument, and that allowing him presidential immunity against these charges would set a dangerous precedent for future presidents wishing to commit criminal acts. In his filing, Smith referred to former President Nixon, whose claim to presidential immunity was negated in 1974 when he was ordered to provide tapes of his conversations from the Oval Office by the Supreme Court.
Trump stands accused of four felony charges relating to an alleged conspiracy to defraud the nation by blocking the certification of votes for his rival Joe Biden. Trump’s actions during the November 2020 elections and then up until and including his actions on January 6, 2021, when some of his supporters rioted at Capitol Hill, are being scrutinized in the case, all while he campaigns as the presumptive Republican presidential nominee for the November 2024 elections.
Trump and his attorneys had requested a pause in proceedings in February while they took the case through lower appeals courts, a process that could have taken several months to complete. Special Counsel Smith asked the Supreme Court to instead look at the case on an extra quick schedule, which they have agreed to do. As a result, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments from April 25, with a decision expected by the end of June or possibly even sooner.
The prosecution is keen for the case to proceed quickly. If Trump were to win the election before the case reaches completion, he could command the Department of Justice to drop the lawsuit entirely.
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