US Supreme Court says Trump immune from prosecution for official acts
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According to the ruling, "there is no immunity for unofficial acts."
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The Supreme Court opinion in former President Donald Trump's immunity case photographed on July 1, 2024. (AP
According to a ruling by the US Supreme Court on Monday, former President Donald Trump can claim immunity from prosecution on election subversion allegations relating to official conduct as president, but he may still face prosecution for unofficial actions.
Trump, the leading contender in the Republican presidential primary is accused of conspiracy to impede an official proceeding, obstructing and attempting to obstruct an official proceeding, and conspiring against rights in a case that constitutes one of the four criminal indictments lodged against him. He pleaded not guilty in all instances and asserted that he possesses absolute immunity from criminal prosecution concerning actions connected to his presidential duties.
The court cited in its ruling that constitutional separation of powers means "the nature of Presidential power entitles a former President to absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for actions within his conclusive and preclusive constitutional authority. And he is entitled to at least presumptive immunity from prosecution for all his official acts. There is no immunity for unofficial acts."
Lower courts refused Trump's petition to dismiss the election subversion accusation against him, citing presidential immunity, and declined to rule on whether the alleged activity involved official acts.
Certain charges in the Trump case are easily characterized, while others raise "more difficult questions," according to the judgment.
Loyalists plan to name, shame federal workers they deem anti-Trump
A conservative-backed organization, citing concerns about the "deep state", plans to publicly identify and criticize career government employees they view as adversarial to Donald Trump. This initiative, known as a "blacklist", will be published online to further Trump's broader objectives, including replacing government workers with loyalists if he returns to office.
The group responsible for this list is the American Accountability Foundation (AAF), established in 2020, with a stated mission of exposing what it perceives as the left's secrets and holding President Biden accountable. Described in a 2022 New Yorker profile as a "conservative dark-money group" and a "slime machine", AAF has attracted attention for its aggressive tactics and political objectives.
'Declaring war on the deep state'
Recently, AAF has concentrated on thwarting Biden's political nominations. Now, as per a press release, AAF is shifting focus to a new initiative called "Project Sovereignty 2025."
Supported by a $100,000 grant from the Heritage Foundation, a prominent conservative think tank, AAF will gather information, including social media activity, on government employees they believe may hinder or undermine a potential future conservative president. They intend to release detailed profiles on these non-public-facing individuals, beginning with those at the Department of Homeland Security, to subject them to public scrutiny.
“WE ARE DECLARING WAR ON THE DEEP STATE,” AAF said in a post on X early in the week.
