Supreme Court hands Trump immunity for some attacks on election system | CyberScoop<\/title> <link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/supreme-court-hands-trump-immunity-for-some-attacks-on-election-system\/\"> <meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\"> <meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\"> <meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Supreme Court hands Trump immunity for some attacks on election system\"> <meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Experts warned that Monday\u2019s ruling hands former President Donald Trump a major victory to avoid accountability for efforts to stay in power after the 2020 election.\"> <meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/supreme-court-hands-trump-immunity-for-some-attacks-on-election-system\/\"> <meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"CyberScoop\"> <meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-07-01T23:55:34+00:00\"> <meta property=\"article:modified_time\" 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stickybar--newsletter js-stickybar\" readability=\"0.82\"> <button class=\"stickybar__close js-stickybar-close\" aria-controls=\"stickybar\"> <svg class=\"icon icon--close\" width=\"21\" height=\"22\" viewBox=\"0 0 21 22\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"m.822.518-.805.805L9.695 11 .017 20.678l.805.805 9.678-9.678 9.677 9.678.806-.805L11.305 11l9.678-9.677-.806-.805-9.677 9.677L.822.518Z\" fill=\"currentColor\" \/><\/svg> <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Close<\/span> <\/button> <\/section>\n<article class=\"single-article content\">\n<div class=\"single-article__container js-single-article-content\">\n<header class=\"single-article__header \" readability=\"24.934090909091\">\n<div class=\"single-article__header-content\" readability=\"29.957446808511\">\n<ul class=\"single-article__eyebrow\">\n<li class=\"single-article__category\"> <a class=\"single-article__category-link\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/news\/government\/\"> <span>Government<\/span> <\/a> <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p> Experts warned that Monday\u2019s ruling hands former President Donald Trump a major victory to avoid accountability for efforts to stay in power after the 2020 election. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__cover-wrap\">\n<figure class=\"single-article__cover\"> <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" fetchpriority=\"high\" width=\"640\" height=\"431\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/supreme-court-hands-trump-immunity-for-some-attacks-on-election-system.jpg?resize=640%2C431&ssl=1\" class=\"single-article__cover-image wp-post-image\" alt decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/supreme-court-hands-trump-immunity-for-some-attacks-on-election-system-2.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/supreme-court-hands-trump-immunity-for-some-attacks-on-election-system-2.jpg?resize=300,202 300w, 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(Photo by Michael A. McCoy\/Getty Images) <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"single-article__content\">\n<div class=\"single-article__content-inner has-drop-cap\"> <html readability=\"67.147826086957\"><body readability=\"134.8730606488\"><\/p>\n<p>A <a href=\"https:\/\/www.supremecourt.gov\/opinions\/23pdf\/23-939_e2pg.pdf\">ruling<\/a> by the Supreme Court on Monday that found the president of the United States has absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for official acts would potentially legalize much of the election subversion work carried out by President Donald Trump in the lead-up to the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, election and civic groups warned.<\/p>\n<p>In a 6-3 decision, the court\u2019s conservative majority ruled that presidents must be able to operate the executive branch \u201cwithout undue caution\u201d of potential criminal liability when carrying out \u201cofficial acts\u201d and that Trump is immune from criminal prosecution related to many of his actions to stay in power, including his attempt to pressure the Justice Department to aid in subverting the election. <\/p>\n<p>The court\u2019s ruling draws a distinction between \u201cofficial\u201d and \u201cunofficial\u201d acts, noting that unofficial acts are not covered by presidential immunity. The Supreme Court asked a lower court to resolve the question of whether Trump\u2019s other alleged actions to keep hold of the White House, such as drumming up slates of fake electors, also fall within the bounds of his official powers \u2014 a process that means the case brought by Special Counsel Jack Smith is unlikely to be resolved before this fall\u2019s election. <\/p>\n<p>Election experts said the ruling provides unprecedented authority to the executive to deem nearly all of its actions \u201cofficial acts\u201d and thus evade prosecution, conceivably capturing most of the actions Trump and his allies took when attempting to overturn the 2020 election results.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>David Becker, executive director of the Center for Election Innovation and Research, called the definition and breadth of immunity granted by the Supreme Court for official presidential acts \u201cincredibly broad, and in my mind, deeply disturbing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think putting aside this particular prosecution, for any unscrupulous individual seated in the Oval Office who might lose an election, the way I read this opinion is it could be a roadmap for those seeking to stay in power,\u201d Becker told reporters shortly after the opinion was released.<\/p>\n<p>Becker said that while claims that Trump incited violence through social media and speeches are still technically alive in lower courts, he noted that the Supreme Court\u2019s ruling found that the president\u2019s communications are \u201clikely to fall comfortably within the outer perimeter of his official duties.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The decision, Trump vs. United States, stemmed from a lawsuit brought by Trump last year seeking to dismiss a federal indictment related to his efforts to stay in power after losing the 2020 election to President Joe Biden. <\/p>\n<p>Monday\u2019s ruling concluded that many of the alleged actions by Trump that provide the basis for the federal indictment are out of bounds due to immunity for actions \u201cperformed within the outer perimeter\u201d of the president\u2019s \u201cofficial responsibilities,\u201d Chief Justice John Roberts wrote on behalf of the majority. <\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Those official responsibilities include communications with other members of the executive branch, including Trump\u2019s conversations with acting Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen in 2020 and 2021 in which he reportedly pressed Rosen to publicly validate claims of election fraud and file briefs on behalf of the Department of Justice to support the president\u2019s legal efforts, the court said. <\/p>\n<p>The court said Trump is also entitled to presumptive immunity on any charges stemming from his conversations with then-Vice President Mike Pence, whom he urged to refuse to certify the vote count in Congress on Jan. 6.<\/p>\n<p>Less clear is whether the ruling will convey immunity to Trump for other actions taken to undermine the election, including a plot to work with state officials to nominate fraudulent slates of electors. In its ruling, the Supreme Court asked a federal district court to resolve the question of whether such actions would fall within the scope of the president\u2019s official powers.<\/p>\n<p>\u200b\u200bIn a dissent, Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote that the majority\u2019s opinion \u201cnarrows the conduct considered \u2018unofficial\u2019 almost to a nullity\u201d and that the indictment against Trump \u201cpaints a stark portrait of a President desperate to stay in power.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She also took direct aim at the majority\u2019s view that the actions described in the indictment touch on core elements of executive branch duties.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cTrump was not criminally indicted for taking actions that the Constitution places in the unassailable core of Executive power. He was not charged, for example, with illegally wielding the Presidency\u2019s pardon power or veto power or appointment power or even removal power,\u201d Sotomayor wrote. \u201cInstead, Trump was charged with a conspiracy to commit fraud to subvert the Presidential election.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Trump celebrated the court\u2019s decision on Truth Social, the social networking platform he started after leaving office. \u201cBIG WIN FOR OUR CONSTITUTION AND DEMOCRACY. PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN!\u201d Trump wrote.<\/p>\n<p>The decision sparked outrage among Democrats, who said the Supreme Court\u2019s ruling threatens to broadly shield sitting presidents who act to undermine the legitimacy of an election or subvert the outcome. <\/p>\n<p>Rep. Joe Morelle, D-N.Y., said the court\u2019s decision \u201cfurther erodes the public\u2019s confidence in our institutions\u201d and greatly increases the chances that Americans won\u2019t get a decisive answer on Trump\u2019s criminal culpability for his actions following the 2020 election. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe saw in real time how, at Donald Trump\u2019s direction, the former president\u2019s armed supporters violently stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021, to stop the peaceful transfer of power. The former president must be held accountable for his decisions, and I urge the lower court to expeditiously consider the questions referred to it.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Robert Weissman, president of Public Citizen, a left-leaning nonprofit consumer advocacy group, said the court\u2019s decision \u201cendangers our democracy\u201d and that lower courts need to move swiftly to resolve the case.. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf we don\u2019t get a verdict in this case before Election Day, and if Trump is re-elected, Trump will have gotten what he desperately wanted from the court \u2014 a lack of accountability for the part he played in the January 6 insurrection,\u201d Weissman said in a statement. <\/p>\n<p><\/body> <\/p>\n<footer class=\"single-article__footer\" readability=\"3.7683397683398\">\n<div class=\"author-card\" readability=\"13\">\n<div class=\"author-card__avatar\">\n<figure class=\"author-card__image-wrap\"> <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"author-card__image\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/supreme-court-hands-trump-immunity-for-some-attacks-on-election-system-1.jpg?w=640&ssl=1\" alt=\"Derek B. Johnson\"> <\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><h4 class=\"author-card__name\">Written by Derek B. Johnson<\/h4>\n<p> Derek B. Johnson is a reporter at CyberScoop, where his beat includes cybersecurity, elections and the federal government. Prior to that, he has provided award-winning coverage of cybersecurity news across the public and private sectors for various publications since 2017. Derek has a bachelor\u2019s degree in print journalism from Hofstra University in New York and a master\u2019s degree in public policy from George Mason University in Virginia. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__tags-container\">\n<h4 class=\"single-article__tags-title\">In This Story<\/h4>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/footer>\n<p> <\/html><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__ads js-single-article-sidebar\">\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-5 ad--rightrail_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-4 ad--rightrail_2 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-3 ad--rightrail_3 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"popular-stories popular-stories--single-post\">\n<div class=\"popular-stories__container\">\n<h2 class=\"popular-stories__title\"> More Scoops <\/h2>\n<p>  <\/div>\n<p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <\/p>\n<section class=\"latest-podcasts\">\n<h2 class=\"latest-podcasts__title\"> Latest Podcasts\t<\/h2>\n<\/section>\n<div class=\"top-categories\">\n<div class=\"top-categories__container\">\n<h3 class=\"top-categories__category-title\">Government<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"top-categories__container\">\n<h3 class=\"top-categories__category-title\">Technology<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"top-categories__container\">\n<h3 class=\"top-categories__category-title\">Geopolitics<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> <\/main> <\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--bottom \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"interstitial\" class=\"welcome__container\"> <button id=\"close-modal-1\" class=\"welcome__clickable_area\"><\/button> <\/p>\n<div class=\"welcome__ad_wrapper\">\n<p> <button id=\"close-modal-3\" class=\"welcome__continue-button\">Continue to CyberScoop<\/button> <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>   <\/body> <a href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/supreme-court-hands-trump-immunity-for-some-attacks-on-election-system\/\">Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Supreme Court hands Trump immunity for some attacks on election<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[292,117,1704],"tags":[298,119,1708],"class_list":["post-4284","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-election-security","category-government","category-supreme-court","tag-election-security","tag-government","tag-supreme-court"],"featured_image_urls":{"full":"","thumbnail":"","medium":"","medium_large":"","large":"","1536x1536":"","2048x2048":"","chromenews-featured":"","chromenews-large":"","chromenews-medium":""},"author_info":{"display_name":"Cyber Scoop","author_link":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/author\/cyberscoop\/"},"category_info":"<a href=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/category\/election-security\/\" rel=\"category tag\">election security<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/category\/government\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Government<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/category\/supreme-court\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Supreme Court<\/a>","tag_info":"Supreme Court","comment_count":"0","jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4284","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4284"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4284\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4284"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4284"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4284"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}

{"id":4284,"date":"2024-07-01T18:55:34","date_gmt":"2024-07-01T23:55:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/?p=80889"},"modified":"2024-07-01T18:55:34","modified_gmt":"2024-07-01T23:55:34","slug":"supreme-court-hands-trump-immunity-for-some-attacks-on-election-system","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/2024\/07\/01\/supreme-court-hands-trump-immunity-for-some-attacks-on-election-system\/","title":{"rendered":"Supreme Court hands Trump immunity for some attacks on election system"},"content":{"rendered":"