Donald Trump immediately hailed a “great victory” for democracy as he campaigns to return to the White House. By deciding on February 28 to take up the issue, and then scheduling the hearings for nearly three months later, the Supreme Court had already significantly delayed the former Republican president’s federal trial for attempting to illegally reverse the results of the 2020 election won by Joe Biden.
During the debates, while the justices were generally skeptical of the absolute immunity claimed by the Republican candidate, several, particularly among conservatives, insisted on the long-term repercussions of their decision. “We are writing a rule for posterity,” Neil Gorsuch had observed, referring to the unprecedented nature of the issue. “This case has enormous implications for the future of the presidency and the country,” added his colleague Brett Kavanaugh.
Serial appeals
Targeted by four separate criminal proceedings, Donald Trump is doing everything possible to go to trial as late as possible, at least after the presidential election. He was convicted on May 30 by a New York court of “aggravated accounting falsification to conceal a conspiracy to pervert the 2016 election.” His sentence will be pronounced on July 11.
