Trump eyes Supreme Court after skeptical appeals panel
(The Center Square) – Former President Donald Trump made it clear Thursday that he has his eyes on the U.S. Supreme Court.
In a morning post on his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump echoed arguments his attorneys made before a three-judge panel of the District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals in favor of presidential immunity.
"A president of the United States must have full immunity, without which it would be impossible for him/her to properly function," he wrote in all caps. "Any mistake, even well intended, would be met with almost certain indictment by the opposing party at term end."
U.S. President Donald Trump. FlickrCC - Gage Skidmore
Earlier this month, Trump's attorney made a similar pitch to federal appeals court judges. The judges questioned Trump's immunity from prosecution for his efforts to overturn the 2020 election and the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
The panel did not indicate that it would adopt Trump's immunity argument – that presidents could only be prosecuted if they had already been impeached and convicted by the Senate. Trump was impeached twice, but never convicted in the Senate.
Judge Florence Pan asked if a former president could be prosecuted for selling pardons or military secrets. She also asked if a president could be prosecuted for ordering the assassination of a political opponent.
Trump continued to plead his case on social media.
"Even events that 'cross the line' must fall under total immunity, or it will be years of trauma trying to determine good from bad," he wrote, again in all caps. "There must be certainty."
Trump compared it to immunity for police officers.
"Example: You can't stop police from doing the job of strong & effective crime prevention because you want to guard against the occasional 'rogue cop' or 'bad apple,' he wrote in all caps. "Sometimes you just have to live with 'great but slightly imperfect.' All presidents must have complete & total immunity, or the authority & decisiveness of a president of the United States will be stripped and gone forever."
While the appeals court has yet to rule on Trump's immunity claims, it was clear Trump planned to appeal any unfavorable ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court.
