Justices set to punt on Trump immunity case

Protesters outside Supreme Court — The "framers did not put an immunity clause into the Constitution"

(Image credit: Kevin Dietsch / Getty Images)

What happened

The Supreme Court's conservative majority, after nearly three hours of oral arguments Thursday, appeared unlikely to give former President Donald Trump the "kind of get-out-of-jail free card" he is seeking in special counsel Jack Smith's 2020 election subversion case, Politico said. But a majority of justices seemed ready to enshrine some level of presidential immunity and send the case back to lower courts for time-consuming parsing of "official" versus personal presidential actions.

This case has "huge implications" for the "future of the presidency" and the country, said Justice Brett Kavanaugh. "We are writing a rule for the ages," Justice Neil Gorsuch said. The "framers did not put an immunity clause into the Constitution," said Justice Elena Kagan. "Not so surprising — they were reacting against a monarch who claimed to be above the law." Telling "the most powerful person in the world" there is "no potential penalty for committing crimes" could turn "the Oval Office into the seat of criminality," said Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson.

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