{"id":2230313,"date":"2024-04-25T17:04:02","date_gmt":"2024-04-25T21:04:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gorsuch-steers-supreme-court-in-trump-immunity-case-were-writing-a-rule-for-the-ages\/"},"modified":"2024-04-25T17:08:45","modified_gmt":"2024-04-25T21:08:45","slug":"gorsuch-steers-supreme-court-in-trump-immunity-case-were-writing-a-rule-for-the-ages","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gorsuch-steers-supreme-court-in-trump-immunity-case-were-writing-a-rule-for-the-ages\/","title":{"rendered":"Gorsuch Guides Supreme Court in Trump Immunity Case: Crafting Timeless Rules"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fgorsuch-steers-supreme-court-in-trump-immunity-case-were-writing-a-rule-for-the-ages%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2230313&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Justice Neil Gorsuch\u2064 took charge of\u2062 the Supreme Court\u2064 debate \u2062involving \u200bformer President Donald Trump&#8217;s immunity from criminal prosecution. Gorsuch stressed the importance of\u200c establishing enduring rules, \u200bfearing potential prosecution of\u2064 future presidents\u200d and the need for clarity on \u200dpresidential immunity.\u200b He emphasized the gravity of the case, striving to set\u200d a precedent\u200b for\u2063 generations to\u200b come. Justice Neil Gorsuch assumed leadership in\u2063 the Supreme \u2062Court discussion\u200d regarding\u200b former\u200b President \u200cDonald Trump&#8217;s \u200cimmunity from prosecution. Emphasizing the necessity of long-lasting regulations, Gorsuch expressed concerns about the \u2063prosecution of\u2063 future presidents\u200b and the\u200c essential clarity on presidential \u2064immunity. \u2062With a focus\u2064 on the case&#8217;s significance, he aimed \u200dto establish a precedent for future generations.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Justice <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/neil-gorsuch\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Neil Gorsuch\">Neil Gorsuch<\/a> on Thursday took control of the debate at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/supreme-court\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Supreme Court<\/a> in a case brought by former President <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Neil Gorsuch\">Donald Trump<\/a> on whether he enjoys immunity from criminal prosecution.<\/p>\n<p>During Thursday\u2019s arguments over Trump\u2019s bid to have total presidential immunity against special counsel <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/jack-smith\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Jack Smith<\/a>\u2018s four-count election subversion indictment, Gorsuch suggested that former presidents like Trump must have immunity or else future presidents could be targeted for prosecution and could therefore seek to pardon themselves before leaving office.<\/p>\n<figure><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve never answered whether a president can do that; happily, it\u2019s never been presented to us,\u201d Gorsuch said of whether a president can pardon himself. Gorsuch indicated that he dreads the idea of having to decide whether presidents can use such authority on themselves.<\/p>\n<p>Gorsuch, Trump\u2019s first of three appointees to the high court, underscored the historical significance of the former president\u2019s case and the Supreme Court\u2019s eventual ruling on the matter of presidential immunity.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m not concerned about this case, but I am concerned about future uses of the criminal law to target political opponents based on accusations about their motives,\u201d Gorsuch said, adding, \u201cWe\u2019re writing a rule for the ages.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat would happen if presidents were under fear that their successors would criminally prosecute them for their acts in office?\u201d Gorsuch asked, citing hypotheticals other justices used, such as one hypothetical about whether former President Barack Obama could be prosecuted for authorizing a drone strike on civilians.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div>\n<blockquote data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<div lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">\n<p>Neil Gorsuch has a &#8220;facts over feelings&#8221; moment with Jack Smith&#8217;s attorney, explains why Trump&#8217;s &#8216;motives&#8217; must be taken out of the equation<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It didn&#8217;t matter what the president&#8217;s motives were\u2026 That&#8217;s something courts shouldn&#8217;t get engaged in\u2026 I am concerned about future\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/pq3ORzy3bW\">pic.twitter.com\/pq3ORzy3bW<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u2014 johnny maga (@_johnnymaga) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/_johnnymaga\/status\/1783530302180061661?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">April 25, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Gorsuch later became testy during an exchange with Michael Dreeben, a veteran Supreme Court litigant who represented the special counsel\u2019s office in the nearly three-hour oral argument session.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid you agree that there are some core functions of the executive that\u00a0\u2026 Congress cannot criminalize?\u201d Gorsuch asked.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes,\u201d Dreeben replied. \u201cWe call it an \u2018as applied Article II challenge.&#8217;\u201d<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>The justice interrupted, asking Dreeben in a testy voice, \u201cCan we call it immunity just for shorthand\u2019s sake?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWell I don\u2019t think I said \u2018just,\u2019 but I think it\u2019s a very significant gap between any official act and the small core of exclusive official acts,\u201d Dreeben said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Gorsuch said he wanted to explore the question further.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLet\u2019s say a president leads a mostly peaceful protest sit-in in front of Congress because he objects to a piece of legislation that\u2019s going through. And it, in fact, delays the proceedings in Congress. Now under <a href=\"https:\/\/codes.findlaw.com\/us\/title-18-crimes-and-criminal-procedure\/18-usc-sect-1512\/#:~:text=(2)%20otherwise%20obstructs%2C%20influences,than%2020%20years%2C%20or%20both.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"1512(c)(2)\">1512(c)(2)<\/a>, that might be corruptly impeding an official proceeding. Is that core and therefore immunized or whatever word euphemism you want to use for that? Or is that not core and therefore prosecutable?\u201d Gorsuch asked.<\/p>\n<p>Dreeben answered that in such a scenario, the president\u2019s action would not be considered a \u201ccore\u201d executive action, and he explained that the kinds of activities that the court has acknowledged exist are in a \u201cpretty small set.\u201d However, the government attorney admitted that a former president probably could not be prosecuted for the conduct Gorsuch described after that president leaves office.<\/p>\n<figure><\/figure>\n<p>The special counsel\u2019s lawyer also came under heavy scrutiny from several of the court\u2019s Republican-appointed members, including Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who asked whether the laws Trump is accused of violating can be applied to a former president and whether an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/third-degree-murder-charge-against-ex-cop-derek-chauvin-reinstated-by-appeals-court\/\" title=\"Third-Degree Murder Charge Against Ex-Cop Derek Chauvin Reinstated By Appeals Court\">appeals court decision<\/a> that found Trump is not entitled to immunity would have devastating consequences for democracy.<\/p>\n<p>Of all the nine justices, Gorsuch appeared to be steering his like-minded colleagues toward a decision that could result in sending the 2020 subversion case back to the district court in Washington for more hearings with instructions about what acts constitute official or private actions.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAfter listening to arguments at the Supreme Court, it\u2019s clear the justices will narrowly hold the President of the United States \u2014 any president \u2014 is immune from criminal prosecution for official (not personal) acts,\u201d Mike Davis, a Trump ally and former clerk to Gorsuch, told the <em>Washington Examiner <\/em>in a statement.<\/p>\n<p>The direct result of such a decision would further delay the Trump election subversion case from making it to a trial, though it\u2019s not certain that delay would persist until after the November 2024 election.<\/p>\n<p>A Supreme Court case <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/justice\/2967568\/supreme-court-majority-leery-of-biden-doj-major-jan-6-case\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">heard earlier this month<\/a> could also threaten half of Smith\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/riot-revisited-biden-doj-tested-in-supreme-court-fight-implicating-trump-and-hundreds-of-jan-6-cases\/\" title=\"Exploring the aftermath: Biden's DOJ faces Supreme Court challenge involving Trump and many Jan. 6 cases\">2020 election subversion indictment<\/a>. Trump is facing two obstruction of justice counts, and the nine justices are prepared to decide whether hundreds of Jan. 6 riot defendants and Trump were incorrectly charged under the 1512(c)(2) statute.<\/p>\n<p>If Trump won the presidency again, it would also open up the high court to the possibility of having to weigh in on whether a former president can pardon himself, as Trump has signaled his intent to quash the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/watch-deranged-sounding-georgia-grand-jury-foreman-throws-election-case-against-trump-into-legal-jeopardy\/\" title=\"WATCH: Deranged-Sounding Georgia Grand Jury Foreman Throws Election Case Against Trump Into Legal Jeopardy\">election interference case<\/a> and Smith\u2019s other <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/donald-trump-arrested-pence-hits-former-president-over-classified-documents-indictment\/\" title=\"Trump arrested, Pence criticizes him for classified documents indictment.\">classified documents indictment<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Gorsuch appeared adamant that it is more important now to determine the breadth of immunity former presidents may enjoy rather than risk a scenario where the high court must determine whether one can pardon himself.<\/p>\n<p>Trump is facing 88 charges altogether in his two <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/terrorism-homicide-prosecutors-brought-in-to-try-capitol-riot-defendants-for-crimes-like-trespassing\/\" title=\"Terrorism, Homicide Prosecutors Brought In To Try Capitol Riot Defendants For Crimes Like Trespassing\">federal criminal cases<\/a>, along with a criminal trial in New York over an alleged hush money scheme and a sweeping racketeering indictment in Fulton County, Georgia.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>During Thursday&#8217;s Supreme Court debate, Justice Neil Gorsuch led discussions in a case involving former President Donald Trump&#8217;s immunity from criminal prosecution. Gorsuch emphasized the significance of setting rules that transcend time, as Trump seeks total presidential immunity against special counsel Jack Smith&#8217;s election subversion indictment<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2633,"featured_media":2230314,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/gorsuch-and-kavanaugh-1024x595.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2230313","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/gorsuch-and-kavanaugh-1024x595.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2230313","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2633"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2230313"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2230313\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2230314"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2230313"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2230313"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2230313"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}