Slow Walking For Trump

For six months now the Supreme Court has been slow walking a decision on former President Donald Trump’s frivolous claim that he has absolute immunity for actions he took while President.

Those Justices responsible for this delay have done a grave disservice to the American people.

By all appearances, those Justices have been slow walking to prevent the trial in Trump’s January 6 criminal case from taking place before the presidential election.

This delay is of enormous benefit to Trump.

To put it simply, those slow-walking Justices have undermined the rule of law and discredited the institution in which they serve.

The pending Supreme Court case, United States v. Trump, is likely the most important criminal case in American history.

It involves whether or not former President Trump is criminally responsible for the lead role he played in the unprecedented attempt to overturn the 2020 presidential election.

Those slow-walking, pro-Trump Justices have refused every opportunity they have had during the last six months to expedite this historic case.

Instead, those Justices have given Trump exactly what he wants — sufficient delay to virtually ensure that there is no trial before the November election.

Every Justice knows that if Trump achieves his goal of delaying a trial until after the election and then wins in November, he will promptly order the Justice Department to drop the case.

Here’s the anatomy of a Supreme Court slow walk.

⮞ 182 Days Ago

Six months ago, on December 23, 2023, the Supreme Court rejected a request from Special Counsel Jack Smith to take the Trump case on an expedited appeal directly from the district court. This followed the federal district court rejecting Trump’s claim of absolute immunity.

⮞ 114 Days Ago

The case reached the Supreme Court in February, after a D.C. Court of Appeals panel unanimously upheld the federal district court ruling rejecting Trump’s immunity claim.

The Supreme Court, however, again failed to treat the case as one of special importance. It did not establish the kind of expedited schedule that it has used in other special cases.

Oral argument was scheduled for April 25, the final day of the Court’s oral argument schedule.

⮞ 57 Days Ago

It has now been 57 days, nearly two months, since oral argument and there is still no opinion.

Earlier this spring, those same Justices took just 25 days after oral argument to issue an opinion favorable to Trump in the Colorado presidential primary ballot case.

Looking back to earlier cases, it took just four days after oral argument for the Supreme Court to issue an opinion in the Pentagon Papers case and just 16 days after oral argument for it to issue an opinion in the Nixon Watergate tapes case.

None of the past cases where the Court acted with appropriate speed is anywhere near as consequential as the Trump case, which deals with a frontal attack on democracy and on our electoral system.

The Court term is expected to end in the next few weeks and we can expect a decision soon.

But whatever the ultimate opinion in the case is, the damage has already been done.

Those Justices who have delayed this case have engaged in indefensible and irresponsible conduct that is expected to prevent a trial before the November election.

By slow walking the case, those Justices have shown utter disregard for the nation’s voters.

Citizens have a right to know before they vote whether the presidential candidate they vote for or against is a felon convicted of orchestrating the first attempted presidential coup in our nation’s history.

Those Justices who are slow walking this case have acted to benefit Trump at the expense of the American people, inflicted profound damage on our democracy, and failed to carry out their constitutional duties.

This was adapted from a piece that appeared in Wertheimer’s Political Report, a Democracy 21 newsletter that’s published on Thursdays. Read this week’s and recent newsletters here. And, subscribe for free here to receive your copy each week via email.