Skeptical Appeal on President Trump's Immunity

2024-01-09 22:55:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

While Mr. Donald Trump was present in the courtroom, from the questions that were directed to the lawyers of both sides, the three members of the Court of Appeals in Washington seemed very skeptical about whether the former president enjoys immunity from charges of trying to overturn the result of the election of of 2020.

The three justices, two of whom were appointed by President Biden and one by President Bush, also questioned whether they have the legal power to hear the case on appeal at this point in the process, leaving open the possibility that Mr. Trump to fall.

On December 1, first instance judge Tanya Chutkan made it clear that the former president did not enjoy immunity.

It may take weeks or months for the Court of Appeal to make a decision, which will most likely be appealed to the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court is meanwhile considering another case for the former president, that of the decision of the state of Colorado to remove Mr. Trump from the ballot under the argument that he participated in the January 6 uprising, as provided for in Article 14 of the constitution.

Former President Trump was present at today's session in Washington. His lawyers asked for the case to be dismissed on the grounds that former presidents cannot face criminal charges for actions related to their official responsibilities.

But the judges reacted with skepticism to this argument. One of the judges, Florence Pan, asked Mr. Trump's lawyer, what would happen if a president sold military secrets, or if he ordered the assassination of a political rival? Shouldn't he be judged for these"?

Attorney John Sauer responded that the president could only be impeached if the House of Representatives had previously indicted him and the Senate, the body that conducts the trial of a president, had found him guilty.

But according to representatives of the Department of Justice, granting immunity to Mr. Trump would pave the way for a precedent for future presidents to commit crimes. "The president has a unique constitutional role, but he is not above the law," said Justice Department attorney James Pearce.

According to the special prosecutor, Jack Smith, who is leading the investigation into Mr. Trump, the latter acted in the role of a political candidate and not in the role of a president when he pressured election officials to overturn the loss and when he incited his supporters. to address the Capitol on January 6, 2021.

The charge of attempting to overturn the outcome of the election is one of four criminal charges that former President Donald Trump faces as he runs for re-election to the White House.

The Department of Justice has long maintained that presidents cannot be prosecuted while in office and for their official decisions.

Mr. Trump, the first former president to be prosecuted, faces 91 charges in 4 different cases. Mr. Trump's lawyer told the three judges that continuing the process against Mr. Trump would pave the way for a cycle of revenge after every election process and would "open a pandora's box from which the country may not be able to recover. / VOA