Former president Donald Trump took a virtual victory lap Wednesday after the Supreme Court ruled it would take up his presidential immunity case.
Trump suggested that the court’s decision to hear arguments — flatly rejected by a D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals panel loath to grant presidents “unbounded authority to commit crimes” — was proof of the validity of his claim.
“Legal Scholars are extremely thankful for the Supreme Court’s Decision today to take up Presidential Immunity,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Without Presidential Immunity, a President will not be able to properly function.”
Trump also raised concerns about presidents being blackmailed after leaving office.
“Presidents will always be concerned, and even paralyzed, by the prospect of wrongful prosecution and retaliation after they leave office,” Trump wrote. “This could actually lead to the extortion.”
Conversely, special counsel Jack Smith argues that allowing presidents blanket immunity while in office could lead to crimes that include disrupting the peaceful transfer of power.
Those are the charges Smith levied against Trump in his federal election interference case, to which the former president has pleaded not guilty.
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During his last months in office, Trump repeatedly accused political opponents, without evidence, of rigging the 2020 presidential election. He also stands accused of pressuring state and federal officials to overturn legitimate results.
He claims that the presidential office makes him immune to criminal prosecution for his actions.
“A President has to be free to determine what is right for our Country without undue pressure,” Trump wrote Wednesday. “A President must be free to make proper decisions. His mind must be clear, and he must not be guided by the fear of retribution!”
The election interference case is one of four criminal indictments the former president faces. Two civil cases recently found him liable for more than a half billion dollars in damages.
