Jack Smith

Fox News host Jesse Waters's attempt to put to rest the notion that Donald Trump might refuse to leave office should he be reelected was foiled Monday by an ominous choice of words.

Watters drew inspiration from the solar eclipse to rebut the concerns raised by people such as historian Michael Beschloss that the former president would not relinquish the White House should he regain it, video shows.

Legal experts Monday heaped praise on special counsel Jack Smith's Supreme Court rebuttal to former President Donald Trump's presidential immunity claim, but expressed dismay about the jurists who will consider it.

Smith filed a 66-page slam ahead of the April 25 hearing when the Supreme Court will consider the future of Trump's federal election interference case.

Special Counsel Jack Smith filed Monday his argument to the Supreme Court against Donald Trump's presidential immunity plea, court records show.

Smith delivered a 66-page condemnation of the former president's claim that his actions between the 2020 presidential election and U.S. Capitol riots on Jan. 6, 2021, are beyond the reach of prosecution in the special counsel's federal election interference case.

Assuming there are no more delays, Monday will mark a first in United States history.

That day, jury selection in Donald Trump's first criminal trial is scheduled to begin in New York City — where Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg will try to show jurors that Trump, in 2016, falsified business records in order to hide hush money payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels.

A group of former government officials and constitutional lawyers submitted a brief to the Supreme Court of the United States Monday, arguing against the idea that former presidents have immunity from criminal prosecution.

The brief responded to a case involving Donald Trump who claims he should be immune from prosecution by United States special counsel Jack Smith. The case is currently under review by the Supreme Court, with hearings set to start April 25.

During an appearance on MSNBC on Sunday afternoon, former U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance claimed it is too risky for special counsel Jack Smith to try Donald Trump for obstruction of justice in Judge Aileen Cannon's courtroom, so drastic measures need to be taken immediately.

Speaking with fill-in host Ali Vitali, Vance said now is the time for the Department of Justice to file paperwork demanding the Trump-appointed jurist recuse herself and then make her defend her actions in writing.

"What do you think? Are you of the opinion that Jack Smith should be taking steps to get the judge off this case as soon as possible?" host Vitali prompted.

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"The best strategy is a motion to recuse," Vance replied. "This judge is behaving in a way that is so far outside the realm that it has left them scratching their heads and looking for a strategy."

"I think at this point the DOJ ought to go ahead and file a motion to recuse the judge," she continued before elaborating, "She's obligated to respond to that in writing if she denies it and then Jack Smith will be able to take it to the 11th Circuit."

"You know, a recusal is difficult for prosecutors. it is not something that we'll do frequently and requires the approval of the solicitor general," she added. " But this is a judge who has made repeated rulings that the 11th Circuit hasn't just said they were wrong, not just said we're wrong, they said they were just in a different universe. And I think that this is the right sort of case and this is the moment where Jack Smith will need to do that. He cannot go to trial in front of this judge, it is far too risky."

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By his words and by his actions, Donald Trump is making it difficult for Judge Aileen Cannon to put her thumb on the scale in his favor as she issues rulings that appear to be designed to derail his obstruction of government trial.

Reacting to Cannon's ruling to put off the question about the application of the Presidential Records Act (PRA) to the case brought by special counsel Jack Smith, until the trial begins, the New Republic's Greg Sargent suggested a Trump Truth Social posting only stirred up more worries that he fully expects her to protect him since he appointed her to her lifetime appointment.

Some House Democrats proved willing this week to honor former President Donald Trump's legacy with the official dedication of a government building in his name: a Florida federal prison.

Reps. Gerry Connolly (D-VA) and Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) on Friday will introduce legislation to rename Federal Correctional Institution, Miami — where Trump's former adviser Peter Navarro is currently incarcerated — as the Donald J. Trump Federal Correctional Institution, according to CBS News' congressional correspondent Scott MacFarlane.

A California bank, along with its largest individual shareholder, has doled out over $500 million in financing that has benefited Donald Trump by helping him pay off debts and even helped him make a profit off a lease on his cash-strapped former Washington hotel.

Axos Bank and California billionaire Don Hankey have also helped Trump cover the $175 million bond on his civil fraud judgement, the Associated Press reported this Friday.

Top Lawfare editor Roger Parloff doesn't buy the argument that special counsel Jack Smith can have Judge Aileen Cannon removed using the legal tactic called "mandamus."

Several legal experts argued that Cannon's refusal to rule on several motions violated her duty as a judge. When Cannon ruled over the Presidential Records Act (P.R.A.) on Thursday, she said that, for now, she is dismissing Trump's defense before the trial. She said that she reserves the right to bring it back up during the trial.