Special Counsel Jack Smith has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reject former President Donald Trump’s bid to delay a trial for 2020 election interference.
Trump’s legal team earlier this week requested an extension of the delay as the court considers whether to take up the question of whether the former president is immune from prosecution for his official conduct in the White House. Two lower courts overwhelmingly rejected that argument, so President Trump asked the high court to intervene.
Prosecutors responded to Trump’s appeal within two days, even though the court had given them until next Tuesday.
donald trump and jack smith (Getty Images)
The indictment does not explicitly mention the upcoming November election or Trump’s status as a front-runner in the Republican primary, but prosecutors said the case was “nationally unique.” “Delays in resolving these charges could harm the public interest.” A swift and fair judgment will be rendered. ”
Smith’s team indicted Trump in August for trying to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.
President Trump asks Justice Department to ‘immediately’ drop charges against him in classified documents case after Biden ruling
Meanwhile, Trump’s lawyers argue that Trump is protected from prosecution for acts that fall within his official duties as president, but no other former president has ever been indicted, so legal This is an unproven argument.
The trial judge and later a federal appeals court rejected those arguments, and a three-judge appellate panel ruled last week: “It is not acceptable for the executive branch to continue to put former occupiers above the law.” I can’t.”
The Trump campaign said NBC News reporter Vaughn Hillyard was not suspended or banned based on the report. (Ellen Schmidt/Las Vegas Review-Journal/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
President Trump’s immunity appeal effectively put a freeze on the proceedings, with U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan canceling a March 4 trial date while the appeals court considers the issue. No new date has been set.
Earlier Wednesday, prosecutors told the court that the lower court’s opinion denying immunity to the former president “underscores how unlikely this court is to agree with Mr. Trump’s unprecedented legal position.” asked the court to deny Trump’s motion to hear the case.
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But if the court wants to decide the issue, Smith said the justices should hear arguments in March and issue a final ruling by late June.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
