Former President Donald Trump is up to his eyeballs in court battles. But he’s got a silver bullet.
Because Trump has shocked everyone with a court appeal that would dismiss all cases against him.
On Thursday, Trump announced his intention to file an appeal against District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan’s ruling not to throw out his 2020 election lawsuit on the grounds of presidential immunity.
The claim that “he is absolutely immune from prosecution” since the conduct listed in Special Counsel Jack Smith’s indictment were performed within the confines of his office, was not enough to convince Chutkan to dismiss Trump’s case on December 1. The president has notified the district court that he would be appealing that ruling.
Chutkan stated in her decision that the Constitution’s language simply doesn’t lend itself to such an argument that the Trump team is making.
According to Chutkan, “Former Presidents enjoy no special conditions on their federal criminal liability.” She went on to say that regardless of any immunity an incumbent president may have, there can only be one chief executive at any given time in the U.S.
Trump appeals to DC Circuit over Judge Chutkan's refusal to dismiss criminal election interference case against him. Earlier – https://t.co/NeDkEQJwK9 pic.twitter.com/z5CcuQ25uA
— Mike Scarcella (@MikeScarcella) December 7, 2023
Additionally, Trump asked Chutkan on Thursday to hold off on any other actions while his appeal is decided.
Schedule for Trump’s appeal on motion to dismiss J6 case.
Getting harder to see how this really goes to trial on March 4. pic.twitter.com/kx5hdA28GL
— Julie Kelly 🇺🇸 (@julie_kelly2) December 8, 2023
As a result of President Trump’s notice of appeal being filed, the Court has lost jurisdiction over the whole matter until the appeals process is resolved, according to his legal team’s statement. “Therefore, it is automatic and mandatory to stay all further proceedings.”
In November, Trump’s additional appeal of Chutkan’s gag order was considered orally by a panel of three judges of the appellate court. The panel featured Judges Cornelia Pillard and Patricia Millett, who were nominated by President Obama, and Judge Bradley Garcia, who was selected by Biden. Shortly after the beginning of November, the court put the injunction on hold.
According to Millett, “there’s a balance that has to be undertaken here”. “We certainly want to make sure that the criminal trial process and its integrity and its truth finding function are protected…But we’ve got to use a careful scalpel here and not step into…skewing the political arena, don’t we?”
The only major concern for Donald Trump and his legal team at this time seems to be if he faces any major litigation before the 2024 election is over and done with.
Questions were raised about whether Donald Trump would face any road bumps on his way to try and win the Republican primary race in 2024 given that he is facing more legal battles than one can seem to handle. Would it have any impact on the conservative voting base?
Apparently not. Donald Trump is as strong as ever. His fundraising is the best in the game, and he remains the leading candidate in the entire race whether Republican or Democrat.
He leads the Republican field by dozens and dozens of points. He leads the Democrat incumbent President Joe Biden by anywhere from 10-20 points. There’s just no getting around the fact that he is the leading candidate.
So for the Trump team, the last thing they want is to see him have to face a trial before the election is over. That will put his strong lead at risk.
It seems unlikely that Trump will get his wish to have this case thrown out on the grounds of Presidential immunity. That much is clear. It would be stunning if the Appellate court did so. It would be so stunning that the Supreme Court would likely have to weigh in immediately.
But that’s likely not even what Donald Trump is trying to accomplish here. His legal team is likely just trying to use every tool at their disposal to prevent a trial from unfairly swaying the end of the Republican primary season or the general election season against the (assumed) Democrat nominee-to-be, Joe Biden.
Stay tuned to the DC Daily Journal.
