Donald Trump is issuing a stark warning to former presidents, including George W. Bush and Barack Obama, insinuating that they would be "in prison" without presidential immunity.
The former president's newest remarks came one day after a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday that he is not immune from prosecution for alleged crimes committed while he was in the White House, in connection with four pending criminal cases being litigated. They include four counts associated with a federal election interference case, including conspiracy to defraud the U.S. and conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, which he has denied and pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Trump's lawyers could appeal the unanimous decision, which was made by Judges J. Michelle Childs and Florence Pan, both appointees of President Joe Biden, and Judge Karen LeCraft Henderson, appointed by President George H.W. Bush.
"If a President does not have Immunity, the Opposing Party, during his/her term in Office, can extort and blackmail the President by saying that, 'if you don't give us everything we want, we will Indict you for things you did while in Office,' even if everything done was totally Legal and Appropriate," Trump wrote Wednesday afternoon on Truth Social.
"That would be the end of the Presidency, and our Country, as we know it, and is just one of the many Traps there would be for a President without Presidential Immunity. Obama, Bush, and soon, Crooked Joe Biden, would all be in PRISON. Protect Presidential Immunity. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!"
In addition to Trump's attorneys planning to appeal this most recent ruling, they also filed a motion to appeal another case led by Special Counsel Jack Smith accusing Trump of mishandling classified documents .
Trump is charged with illegally hoarding classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida and obstructing government efforts to get them back. A trial is scheduled to commence in May.
Judge Aileen Cannon, who is presiding over the documents case, is scheduled to meet with Trump's lawyers on February 12. It follows a hearing she had with Department of Justice (DOJ) prosecutors last week.
The "ex parte" hearing on February 12 is related to Classified Information Procedures Act (CIPA) motions filed by the DOJ in December, essentially arguing that the ex-president and two co-defendants, Walt Nauta and Carlos De Oliveira, should be restricted from classified document access.
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Nick Mordowanec is a Newsweek reporter based in Michigan. His focus is reporting on Ukraine and Russia, along with social ... Read more
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