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The Supreme Court ordered former President Donald Trump to respond to special prosecutor Jack Smith’s request for an expedited hearing on Trump’s claim he has absolute immunity from prosecution for the charges he faces related to his effort to steal the 2020 election, setting themselves up as the key decision-makers on whether Trump will face a significant trial before the 2024 election.
The fast move by Smith to skip the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals and go straight for a ruling from the Supreme Court happened for one big reason: timing. The prosecution of Trump for his actions leading up to and surrounding the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection is set to go to trial on March 4, 2024. If it keeps to that schedule, it will be the only one of the three biggest prosecutions Trump faces that is likely to be resolved prior to the presidential election.
And if Trump wins the 2024 election, the Department of Justice’s long-standing position that the sitting president cannot be prosecuted would likely shield him from justice. Trump’s best bet to avoid a trial before he can win the presidency is now in the hands of a conservative Supreme Court that has been intermittently skeptical of his most grandiose positions, even though he appointed three of its members.
A federal district court already ruled on Dec. 1 against Trump’s claim he has absolute immunity from prosecution for any action taken while in office. Trump appealed the decision to the D.C. Circuit appeals court, but Smith has now asked the Supreme Court to step in and rule first.
