09 January 2024 , 17:03
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Prosecuting Donald Trump would “open a Pandora's box" of possible prosecutions against other former Presidents, Trump's attorney has argued.
“To authorise the prosecution of a president for official acts would open a Pandora’s box from which this nation may never recover,” said D. John Sauer, a lawyer for Trump, asserting that presidents could be prosecuted for giving Congress “false information” to enter war or for authorising drone strikes targeting U.S. citizens abroad.
This comes as Donald Trump appeared in court to hear whether he can be prosecuted for trying to overturn the 2020 election. The former President is returning for the first time in months to the federal courthouse in Washington as an appeals court hears arguments about whether Trump is immune from prosecution.
“Could George W. Bush be prosecuted for obstruction of an official proceeding for allegedly giving false information to Congress, to induce the nation to go to war in Iraq under false pretenses?” Sauer asked.
“Could President Obama be potentially charged for murder for allegedly authorizing drone strikes targeting US citizens located abroad?" he added.
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Trump's motorcade arrives to the E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Courthouse (Getty Images)The judges jumped right into questioning Trump’s lawyer over whether the court has jurisdiction to hear the appeal at this time. Sauer said presidential immunity is clearly a claim that is meant to be reviewed before trial and also noted that special counsel Jack Smith’s team has not challenged the court’s jurisdiction.
The outcome of the arguments carries enormous ramifications both for the landmark criminal case against Trump and for the broader, and legally untested, question of whether an ex-president can be prosecuted for acts committed in the White House. It will also likely set the stage for further appeals before the U.S. Supreme Court, which last month declined a request to weigh but could still get involved later.
Trump arrives to make a statement to the media (MICHAEL REYNOLDS/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)A swift decision is crucial for special counsel Smith and his team, who are eager to get the case — now paused pending the appeal — to trial before the November election. But Trump’s lawyers, in addition to seeking to get the case dismissed, are hoping to benefit from a protracted appeals process that could delay the trial well past its scheduled March 4 start date, including until potentially after the election.
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The E. Barrett Prettyman United States Courthouse, where Trump's lawyers are trying to convince three federal appeals-court judges that the former US president is immune from charges related to his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election (MICHAEL REYNOLDS/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)Underscoring the importance to both sides, Trump, the 2024 Republican presidential primary front-runner, was attending Tuesday’s arguments even though the Iowa caucuses are just one week away and despite the fact that there’s no requirement that defendants appear in person for such proceedings. It will be his first court appearance in Washington, one of four cities where he faces criminal prosecutions and potential trials, since his arraignment in August.
He’s already signalling that he could use the appearance to portray himself as the victim of a politicised justice system. Though there’s no evidence that President Joe Biden has had any influence on the case, Trump’s argument could resonate with Republican voters in Iowa as they prepare to launch the presidential nomination process.
Trump is facing a number of legal and civil challenges (AP)“Of course I was entitled, as President of the United States and Commander in Chief, to Immunity,” he wrote in a social media post, adding, “I was looking for voter fraud, and finding it, which is my obligation to do, and otherwise running our Country.”
Former presidents enjoy broad immunity from lawsuits for actions taken as part of their official White House duties. But because no former president before Trump has ever been indicted, courts have never before addressed whether that protection extends to criminal prosecution.