Three judges on the panel are studying whether former US President Donald Trump had immunity during the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021, were skeptical of the arguments presented by the defense of the former president this Tuesday during the hearing.
“Can the President issue a warrant to SEAL Team 6 to kill a political rival?” (an elite military unit), questioned Judge Florence Y. Pan of the federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., testing the limits of presidential immunity defended by the former president.
Trump’s lawyer, John Sauer, responded that only the Senate, Through the impeachment process, rather than a judicial body, he could judge the president’s actions, even in the case of a political assassination initiated by Pan.
In addition to this defense, Trump’s lawyers are seeking to file a criminal case against him for conspiracy to obstruct the official proceedings brought against him for the events of the attack on the Capitol, in which this immunity claim is framed.
Sauer argued that the possibility of trying and/or convicting the leader for his actions would open a “Pandora’s box”.
“If the president has to look over his shoulder every time he has to make a controversial decision and ask himself: ‘Am I going to jail for this?’ This weakens his position,” said the lawyer.
Sauer’s arguments even shocked Judge Karen L. Henderson, the only one of the panel’s three judges to be appointed by a Republican president, specifically George HW Bush (1989-1993).
“I think it’s paradoxical to say that his constitutional duty to ensure that the laws are faithfully enforced allows him to violate the criminal law,” Henderson said.
This Monday, Trump suddenly announced his arrival today for the hearing in Washington, whose presence was not required.
According to the testimony of reporters who attended the hearing, Trump was very active, taking notes and sharing them with his lawyer.
The hearing, which was supposed to last about 40 minutes (20 minutes for the defense and 20 for the prosecution), ended up lasting about 1 hour and 15 minutes.
Trump arrived and left the court in Washington in a motorized caravan out of reach of the cameras waiting for the former president.
After he entered the court, three protesters against the former president remained outside the building in the federal capital with banners that read “no one is above the law” and “Trump’s treason”.
Despite the rain that accompanied the day from the first hour, one of the members of the group emphasized to EFE the importance of staying “so that democracy does not die in the United States.”
Another participant assures that this procedure is “not a joke”, because she believes that if Trump wins the presidential elections in 2024, “there will be no more elections” because “he will be a dictator like Putin in Russia”.
The immunity case is now in the appeals court because in December the judge presiding over the criminal case, Tanya Chutkan, rejected Trump’s requests to dismiss the case because of presidential immunity, but agreed to stay the proceedings until he appeals the decision.
It is very likely that once the appeals court rules, one of the parties will appeal again and the case will end up in the United States Supreme Court.
The former president is thus seeking to avoid trial for which he is charged with several crimes – the most serious of which is conspiracy to obstruct official proceedings – which could lead to a maximum of 55 years in prison.
The start of the trial was originally scheduled for March 4, 2024 in the federal capital, which coincides completely with the primary election process.
However, the immunity litigation could in turn become a delaying strategy for the former president’s legal team to delay that date.
Source: Panama America
I am Amelia James, a passionate journalist with a deep-rooted interest in current affairs. I have more than five years of experience in the media industry, working both as an author and editor for 24 Instant News. My main focus lies in international news, particularly regional conflicts and political issues around the world.
