Judge denies two of Trump’s motions to dismiss his federal election interference case

A
federal
judge
on
Friday
denied
two
of
former
President
Donald
Trump’s motions
to
dismiss the
federal
election
interference
case
against
him.

U.S.
District
Judge
Tanya
Chutkan,
who
is
overseeing
the
case,
ruled
against
the
first
motion
by
saying
that
presidents
do
not
have
absolute
immunity
from
criminal
prosecution
for
acts
that
fall
within
their
official
responsibilities
unless
first
impeached
and
convicted
in
the
Senate.

“The
Constitution’s
text,
structure,
and
history
do
not
support
that
contention,”
Chutkan
wrote
in
her
opinion.
“No
court—or
any
other
branch
of
government—has
ever
accepted
it.
And
this
court
will
not
so
hold.
Whatever
immunities
a
sitting
President
may
enjoy,
the
United
States
has
only
one
Chief
Executive
at
a
time,
and
that
position
does
not
confer
a
lifelong
“get-out-of-jail-free”
pass.”

Trump’s
indictment
also
does
not
violate
the
First
Amendment,
Chutkan
ruled,
rejecting
one
of
the
arguments
the
former
president
had
made
to
get
the
case
dismissed.

“It
is
well
established
that
the
First
Amendment
does
not
protect
speech
that
is
used
as
an
instrument
of
a
crime,
and
consequently
the
Indictment—which
charges
Defendant
with,
among
other
things,
making
statements
in
furtherance
of
a
crime—does
not
violate
Defendant’s
First
Amendment
rights,”
she
wrote.

Trump
has
two
additional
pending
motions
to
dismiss
the
D.C.
case
based
on
statutory
grounds
and
claims
of
selective
or
vindictive
prosecution.

Trump
faces
four
counts
of
criminal
conduct related
to
conspiracy
to
defraud
the
U.S.
after
he
lost
the
2020
presidential
election
to
Joe
Biden.
He
pleaded
not
guilty
and
has
publicly
condemned
the
allegations