The Supreme Court, in an ideologically divided 6-3 decision, has ruled that former President Trump should be given some immunity from charges related to his alleged role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.
Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for the majority that former presidents have broad — but not total — immunity from criminal prosecution related to their actions while in office.
The court’s ruling puts many big decisions before Judge Tanya Chutkan, an appointee of former President Obama who is overseeing the Jan. 6 case against Trump in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
For his part, Trump has long argued he has “absolute immunity” for all acts in office.
THE RULING: “At least with respect to the president’s exercise of his core constitutional powers, this immunity must be absolute. As for his remaining official actions, he is entitled to at least presumptive immunity,” the conservative majority panel of justices wrote in the late-term decision rendered, later adding, “There is no immunity for unofficial acts.”
The Hill’s Rebecca Beitsch and Zach Schonfeld report that the dust likely won’t be settled before the November election, when Trump is set to again face off against President Biden.
BACKGROUND: Justices tossed around the idea of presidential immunity during oral arguments, and how the issues in the case could have major implications for not just Trump but the future of the presidency.
“The most powerful person in the world with the greatest amount of authority could go into office knowing there would be no potential penalty for committing crimes,” Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, a Biden appointee and the first Black woman on the Supreme Court, hypothetically posed during arguments in April. “I’m trying to understand what the disincentive is from turning the Oval Office into the seat of criminal activity in this country.”
Trump’s lawyer, John Sauer, at the time argued immunity should still shield Trump from accusations related to the alleged attempt to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
TRUMP, BIDEN & MORE RESPOND: Trump hailed the court’s ruling in a post Monday.
“BIG WIN FOR OUR CONSTITUTION AND DEMOCRACY. PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN!” he posted on Truth Social.
Earlier in the morning, before the decision was announced, Trump claimed during an interview with the conservative John Fredericks Radio Network that the ruling would have “a bigger impact on Joe Biden than it does on me.”
Biden’s reelection campaign said the ruling “doesn’t change the facts” of what happened on Jan. 6.
“Donald Trump snapped after he lost the 2020 election and encouraged a mob to overthrow the results of a free and fair election. Trump is already running for president as a convicted felon for the very same reason he sat idly by while the mob violently attacked the Capitol: he thinks he’s above the law and is willing to do anything to gain and hold onto power for himself,” a senior Biden campaign adviser said.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said the ruling represented a “sad day for America and a sad day for our democracy,” noting three of the justices who ruled in Trump’s favor were appointed by the former president during his four-year term.
“This decision undermines the credibility of the Supreme Court, and suggests that political influence trumps all in our courts today,” he said in the statement.
Meanwhile, Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.), who has been a staunch Trump ally and is running for Senate, said the ruling was a “massive win for the Constitution.”
“Corrupt Democrats tried to take American voters out of the 2024 election by twisting the rule of law and weaponizing our justice system. But the Democrats failed,” Banks said in a statement.
There was only a small scattering of protestors outside the Supreme Court as the ruling was issued.
LIVE UPDATES FROM THE HILL: Catch up on the latest from the Supreme Court’s ruling here.
