Donald Trump is facing a lot of legal woes, including the Supreme Court’s ruling that the former President will have to hand over his tax returns to a House committee that has been seeking them. And Republican-appointed appeals court judges didn’t appear too keen on his latest bid to slow the Mar-a-Lago classified documents case. On Monday, a federal judge ruled that Trump can’t claim presidential immunity to avoid a lawsuit that accuses him of civil rights violations in his efforts to undermine the results of the 2020 election.
Via Bloomberg:
Trump had argued that he was “absolutely immune” from damages for actions within the “outer perimeter” of his official duties as President and that his post-election activities in 2020 were part of an effort to protect and defend the Constitution.
But US District Judge Emmet Sullivan in Washington agreed with the challengers — the NAACP and Michigan voters and advocates — that Trump’s conduct was “purely political,” according to the ruling.
“If Former President Trump disrupted the certification of the electoral vote count, as Plaintiffs allege here, such actions would not constitute executive action in defense of the Constitution,” Sullivan said. “For these reasons, the Court concludes that Former President Trump is not immune from monetary damages.”
The judge granted a motion by the plaintiffs to file an amended complaint against Trump and the Republican National Committee but has yet to determine whether they are liable for civil rights violations.
He’s not doing very well:
It’s the latest such ruling against Trump’s immunity claims on the DC federal court. In February, US District Judge Amit Mehta ruled Trump must face lawsuits seeking to hold the former president legally responsible for the violence and disruption at the US Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, as Congress met to certify President Joe Biden’s win.
“The Court concludes that Plaintiffs’ allegations support severe, substantial harm from Former President Trump’s ongoing and continued efforts to intimidate officials, spread false claims of fraud, and imperil the right to vote,” Sullivan wrote.
Trump has been taking hit after hit in court, and that explains why he’s even more whiney than usual on Truth Social, where he’s been throwing pity parties for himself.
