As Spencer wrote yesterday, the DC Court of Appeals rejected the argument from Donald Trump’s legal team that the former president is immune from prosecution stemming from Special Counsel Jack Smith’s January 6 case. The federal election interference trial was indefinitely delayed until this question surrounding presidential immunity was resolved, and there was concern that this could leech into Smith’s other case against Trump: the alleged mishandling of classified materials. Does this mean the trial date is back on the calendar? Not yet.
As Jonathan Turley commented yesterday, even with the DC Court of Appeals rejecting the former president’s legal arguments, the ruling was, in a way, a win for Trump. The word of the day is delay, and here’s one way this whole circus could drag out, thanks to our endless appeals process:
The D.C. Circuit order adds a wrinkle on scheduling by saying that Trump only has until Monday, Feb. 12 to file with the Supreme Court. The standard rules allow Trump 90 days. If he does not, the mandate returns to the District Court which can restart pre-trial proceedings...
— Jonathan Turley (@JonathanTurley) February 6, 2024
...If a stay were issued, we would be back to the possible filing of an en banc decision and then a later petition to the Supreme Court and months of delay in filings alone...
— Jonathan Turley (@JonathanTurley) February 6, 2024
...Keep in mind, there is still much to be done on the district court level. Whenever the court restarts pretrial proceedings, it could take weeks, if not months. If everything breaks for Smith on the calendar, he could still secure a pre-election trial but he is facing…
— Jonathan Turley (@JonathanTurley) February 6, 2024
If Trump’s team can maintain meddling with these trials on cases, almost all of which are politically motivated, then it’s a win. The Georgia RICO case against Trump has hit a snag, as the prosecution has been slapped with various ethics charges stemming from the personal relationship between Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and Nathan Wade, who could be removed from the team over this romantic arrangement. Jack Smith’s trials could be put on hold by endless appeals. That leaves the weakest trial against Trump: the Stormy Daniels hush money case from Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg.
Trump faces over 90 criminal charges. Given how the deck is stacked, it’s hard to see him escaping conviction on all of them, but we’ll revisit that when we come to that juncture.