Judge Aileen Cannon granted Trump’s motion to pause some pre-trial deadlines in Jack Smith’s classified documents case following the Supreme Court’s ruling on presidential immunity.
The Supreme Court on Monday ruled 6-3 that Trump has absolute immunity for his core Constitutional powers.
Former presidents are entitled to at least a presumption of immunity for their official acts, the high court ruled.
The Supreme Court ruled there is no immunity for unofficial acts.
Trump’s attorneys on Friday asked Judge Cannon to pause the classified documents case and reconsider two motions to dismiss after the Supreme Court’s decision on presidential immunity.
“Trump’s lawyers asked U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon to pause all the proceedings in the documents case — other than a pending ruling regarding the special counsel’s request for a gag order — so that she can determine whether Trump’s alleged conduct in the case is “official or unofficial.”” – ABC News reported.
Trump’s attorneys argued the Supreme Court’s ruling “guts the [special counsel’s] position that President Trump has ‘no immunity’ and further demonstrates the politically-motivated nature of their contention that the motion is ‘frivolous.'”
Citing Justice Clarence Thomas’s concurring opinion, President Trump’s lawyers asked Cannon to reconsider the motion to dismiss based on the argument that Jack Smith was unlawfully appointed.
Recall that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas questioned Jack Smith’s authority as special counsel in his concurring opinion on the high court’s presidential immunity ruling.
Clarence Thomas questioned Jack Smith’s authority because he was a private citizen when he was tapped as a special prosecutor.
Justice Thomas also argued that Jack Smith is not Senate-confirmed (Trump’s lawyers are also using this argument before Judge Cannon).
“Regarding the Appointments Clause, including the principal-officer issue, Justice Thomas reasoned in his concurrence: If this unprecedented prosecution is to proceed, it must be conducted by someone duly authorized to do so by the American people. The lower courts should thus answer these essential questions concerning the Special Counsel’s appointment before proceeding,” Trump’s attorneys wrote, according to the motion reviewed by The Gateway Pundit.
President Trump’s attorneys also blasted the special counsel for leaking to the Washington Post.
According to a leak to The Washington Post, Special Counsel Jack Smith will continue to file motions and possibly conduct a trial after Election Day if Trump wins in a race against the clock before Inauguration Day.
The Justice Department cannot charge a sitting president so they want to ‘get Trump’ before he is sworn in on January 20, 2025.
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“Remarkably, on the day after President Biden’s remarks and not long after President Trump’s overwhelming debate victory, “people familiar with” DOJ’s “internal deliberations” fully embraced their role in this abomination by telling the media that Jack Smith and DOJ plan to “pursue the criminal cases against Donald Trump past Election Day even if he wins . . . .” Ex. B (Washington Post article). The decision to perpetrate these leaks as part of the response to President Biden’s crushing debate defeat resolves any doubt that Smith and the Special Counsel’s Office prioritize politics over justice. Smith’s indirect notification to the media and his allies that he has no qualms about prosecuting President Trump, even as President-elect after more than 100 million Americans cast their votes, is in blatant violation of DOJ policy and practice,” Trump’s attorneys wrote.
Judge Cannon granted a temporary stay on two deadlines – a July 8 deadline for expert disclosures and a July 10 deadline related to CIPA litigation.
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