Trump win as US court rejects extraordinary request to fast-track case over presidential immunity

The former US President is up to his elbows in legal proceedings, but a small development has been hailed as a strategic win as Trump eyes off a second bid for the White House.

The United States Supreme Court has rejected a request to fast-track proceedings in a case about whether Donald Trump has immunity from federal prosecution.

The move by Jack Smith, the lawyer bringing the case against the former American president, has been labelled an “extraordinary gamble” as it attempts to skip normal court process.

The question of presidential immunity must be decided before a case accusing Mr Trump of undermining the results of the 2020 election can go ahead.

Mr Trump’s lawyers are attempting to delay proceedings as he makes a bid for a second term in the White House, arguing the move tried to “rush” the issues with “reckless abandon”.

The development has been hailed as a major strategic win for the 77-year-old Republican hopeful ahead of the 2024 presidential primary season, which kicks off in January.

Mr Trump currently leads sitting president Joe Biden, 81, in a number of key polls.

It comes as a new report claims Mr Trump was recorded pressuring two election officials not to certify vote totals in a key electorate in Michigan.

It’s one of five cases brought against the Republican hopeful. Picture: Getty Images via AFP

The Detroit News reports Mr Trump told canvassers they would look “terrible” if they certified the results on a phone call recorded in November 2020.

Mr Smith argued the stakes are “at least as high, if not higher” than a Watergate-era case in which former president Richard Nixon unsuccessfully claimed presidential immunity while fighting a subpoena requesting him to hand over Oval Office tapes.

“The resolution of the question presented is pivotal to whether the former President himself will stand trial – which is scheduled to begin less than three months in the future,” he wrote.

Meanwhile, defence lawyers argued that because Mr Trump can’t be criminally tried over the issue as he was already acquitted by the Senate during his impeachment trial.

An expedited review of the immunity question is currently underway at the DC Circuit, a court based in Washington, with arguments set to begin on January 9.

Assuming the issue is resolved, the criminal trail will begin in March.

Mr Trump was this week dealt a brutal blow in Colorado, when the state’s Supreme Court decided to remove his name from the Republican primary ballot after ruling he incited an insurrection in January 2021 and should be barred from holding office.

He is also currently battling four other cases.

The 77-year-old is running for a second term as US President. Picture: Getty Images via AFP

The businessman is currently awaiting the verdict of a civil fraud case in New York, which accused him of conspiring to pad his net worth by billions to make deals and secure loans.

Mr Trump has also been charged with falsifying records to cover up hush money payments in an attempt to bury allegations of extramarital affairs during his first White House campaign.

The trial is set to begin in New York in March, as the presidential primary season heats up.

Mr Trump also faces trial over 40 felony counts over documents taken from the White House to his Mar-A-Lago home after he left office, which is set to take place in Florida in May.

He is also awaiting trial for a second election interference case in Georgia.

Originally published as Trump win as US court rejects extraordinary request to fast-track case over presidential immunity