Appeals court hears arguments on Trump’s presidential immunity claim

A three-judge federal appeals court panel in Washington on Tuesday appeared skeptical about former President Donald Trump’s claims that presidential immunity protects him from some prosecution. Trump has filed the appeal in response to U.S. Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith’s charges alleging that Trump attempted to overturn the 2020 election results. Trump has denied doing anything wrong while contesting the integrity of those election results. Smith had previously attempted to bypass the appeals court, asking the Supreme Court itself to quickly rule on the case, but the high court refused.

Why are the judges skeptical? Judge Karen Henderson said it struck her as “paradoxical” that Trump’s constitutional duty to execute the laws faithfully could be used to protect him from prosecution if he then broke the law. The appeals court is supposed to be on an expedited schedule to reach a decision, but it’s not clear exactly when it will rule. The court’s opinion could jeopardize the Justice Department’s case against Trump, or lead Trump to file another appeal to the Supreme Court.

Dig deeper: Listen to Mary Reichard’s interview with attorney Daniel R. Suhr on The World and Everything in It podcast about the Supreme Court hearing arguments about whether Trump’s name can stay on primary ballots in Colorado.