2024-04-25 20:14:48
The predominantly conservative US Supreme Court appeared Thursday resistant to arguments in favor of absolute criminal immunity invoked by Donald Trump as former president, but its decision might further delay his federal trial in Washington.
By deciding two months ago to take up this issue, the highest court in the United States has already postponed the federal trial of the former Republican president for attempting to illegally reverse the results of the election of 2020 won by Democrat Joe Biden.
If most of the nine judges were skeptical of the absolute immunity claimed by the Republican candidate in the November presidential election, several, particularly among conservatives, insisted on the long-term repercussions of their decision.
“We are writing a rule for posterity,” observed Neil Gorsuch, referring to the unprecedented nature of the question.
“This affair has enormous implications for the future of the presidency and the country,” added his colleague Brett Kavanaugh.
At the Trump trial, a witness recounts how he hunted down scandals to protect him: “I was eyes and ears to monitor everything”
Donald Trump, who appeared at the same time in New York, where he has been on trial since April 15 for suspicious payments during the 2016 campaign, assured that criminal immunity was essential to the exercise of supreme power.
“Without immunity, you are not going to do anything, you become an honorary president”, for fear of being “indicted once you leave office”, he declared.
Army coup?
But the judges, notably the three progressives, fought head to head with Donald Trump’s lawyer, John Sauer.
“And if a president orders the army to organize a coup,” one of them, Elena Kagan, asked him, “is this an official act” covered by criminal immunity? ?
“It might well be,” the lawyer replied.
Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson contrasted her fears of a risk of paralysis of the executive with that of a president freed from all criminal responsibility. She mentioned in this scenario “a transformation of the Oval Office into the seat of criminal activity in this country”.
“His unprecedented thesis would exempt former presidents from criminal liability for corruption, treason, sedition, murder, and in this case, conspiracy to reverse the results of an election and remain in power,” listed the representative of the Ministry of Justice. Justice, Michael Dreeben.
Targeted by four separate criminal proceedings, Donald Trump is doing everything possible to go to trial as late as possible, at least following the presidential election.
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