The U.S. Supreme Court briefing on former President Donald Trump's immunity question was earlier this month, and there's still no word on what the final outcome will be.
The immunity question was decided recently by the D.C. Circuit panel, which ultimately rejected it.
Now some observers, like MSNBC's Jordan Rubin, are speculating on why SCOTUS is taking its time on the issue.
Rubin described the situation as "complex," noting that it "isn’t Trump’s appeal of the D.C. Circuit’s ruling exactly, but rather an application to keep that ruling from taking effect; if it takes effect, then the case goes back to U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan for trial."
Rubin explained that the former president and his attorneys' application "is to keep the D.C. Circuit ruling on hold pending his forthcoming appeal of that ruling."
He added:
It’s true that the justices could simply grant or deny Trump’s application. Granting it would punt the case indefinitely into the future and imperil the chances of it seeing trial before the November election. Denying it would send the case back for trial while still letting Trump move ahead with his appeal.
Several outcomes could come about depending on whether or not the high court approves or denies the application. If denied, it would like spark dissent from conservative justices, "which could prolong the timeline of when the court issues that denial."
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Trump moves to dismiss classified documents case, claiming immunity and unlawful appointment of special counselhttps://t.co/Gr1uQ9QZX3
— 🇺🇸 Mike Davis 🇺🇸 (@mrddmia) February 23, 2024
Rubin went on to discuss several additional possibilities, many of which would delay Trump's trial to varying degrees -- something Democrats undoubtedly dread, especially if his trial is delayed beyond the 2024 election.
"The bigger question, then, is how long it takes the court to decide, and by which legal mechanism. As the above options suggest, it can take some behind-the-scenes wrangling to decide which option to choose — especially if the court wants to speak with one voice on a landmark issue," the MSNBC columnist wrote.
According to CBS News, in what the outlet described as a "flurry of late-night court filings," Trump's lawyers moved to have the federal classified documents case dismissed.
The outlet noted:
In four motions to dismiss the indictment submitted to Judge Aileen Cannon, Trump's attorneys took issue with Jack Smith's appointment as special counsel and claimed various legal principles — including the Presidential Records Act and the theory of presidential immunity — shield the former president from criminal prosecution in the case.
Trump's lawyers argued, "President Trump was still the President of the United States when, for example, many of the documents at issue were packed (presumably by the GSA), transported, and delivered to Mar-A-Lago."
Only time will tell what comes of the federal case, but something tells us it's far from over.
