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In the surreal world of protracted prosecutions of pushing the envelope and going after former President Donald Trump, Special Counsel Jack Smith filed a new indictment for four felony courts this week against the former president on the eve appearing in court.
The new indictment focuses on the same criminal charges over the 2020 presidential election, but narrows the criminal allegations against the former president following the U.S. Supreme Court opinion that conferred broad immunity for former presidents.
The new indictment leaves out a section that had been previously included alleged criminal charges that Donald Trump had used the law enforcement powers of the Justice Department to overturn his election loss.
The U.S. Supreme Court’s historical 6-3 opinion had found that Trump was immune from that prosecution. That ruling made it clear that the former president’s trial would not happen before the November election.
The U.S. Supreme court remanded the case to U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan in the lower court. Judge Chutkan now must analyze which allegations in the old indictment were unofficial actions versus actions taken officially, and decide which charges then proceed to trial.
The lower court proceedings had been brought to a screeching halt months ago while the U.S. Supreme Court was deciding the immunity issue.
Trump responded on Truth Social and called the new indictment “an act of desperation” and an “effort to resurrect a ‘dead’ Witch Hunt."
Trump wrote the new case has “all the problems of the old Indictment, and should be dismissed IMMEDIATELY. ”
The special counsel’s office released a statement that the indictment “reflects the Government’s efforts to respect and implement the [U.S.] Supreme Court’s holdings and remand instructions.”
The new indictment removes references to Trump’s communications with federal government officials, who told the sitting president that there was no evidence of fraud that would change the outcome of the 2020 election. It has removed references to certain Trump statements, including a claim he made during a White House press conference two days after the election about a suspicious dump of votes in Detroit.
The new indictment includes an allegations that Trump participated in a scheme orchestrated by allies that included slates of fraudulent battleground state electors where Trump had lost.
There are allegations that Trump pressured Vice-President Michael Pence to reject electoral votes, and that Trump and his allies attempted to delay the electoral certification.
Whatever transpired between President Trump and Vice-President Mike Pence has been deemed official and hence, Trump is immune from prosecution for that exchange.
Smith has been consulting with Department of Justice officials for week about how to respond to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling and how to respond with the remand to the lower court.
"Under our constitutional structure of separated powers, the nature of presidenital power entitles a former president to absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for actions within his conclusive and preclusive constitutional authority," Chief Justice John Roberts wrofe for the U.S. Supreme Court decision. "And he is entitle to at least presumptive immunity from prosecution for all his official acts. There is no immunity for unofficial acts."
The new indictment can be read here.
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