(WASHINGTON) — The Supreme Court on Monday rejected Donald Trump’s sweeping claim of “absolute” immunity from criminal prosecution for “unofficial acts” but granted some protections for former presidents for official acts taken while in the White House.
The split 6-3 opinion was authored by Chief Justice John Roberts.
“The President is not above the law,” the opinion read. “But under our system of separated powers, the President may not be prosecuted for exercising his core constitutional powers, and he is entitled to at least presumptive immunity from prosecution for his official acts. That immunity applies equally to all occupants of the Oval Office.”
The ruling will affect whether Trump faces a federal trial this year on four felony counts brought by special counsel Jack Smith, including conspiracy to defraud the U.S. and obstruction of an official proceeding, for his attempts to overturn his 2020 election loss to President Joe Biden.
(WASHINGTON) — The Supreme Court on Monday sidestepped ruling whether Florida and Texas laws limiting how social media companies regulate content violate the First Amendment, sending the issue back to the lower courts for further review.
(WASHINGTON) — The Supreme Court justices will meet on Monday for a final day of opinions and are expected to issue a blockbuster decision on whether a former president is shielded from criminal liability for “official acts” taken while in the White House.
In the case, Donald Trump is claiming such immunity to try to quash the federal election subversion prosecution brought by special counsel Jack Smith.
Smith charged Trump with four felony counts, including conspiracy to defraud the United States and conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, over his efforts to hold onto power after his 2020 election loss. Trump pleaded not guilty and has denied any wrongdoing. The trial was set to start on March 4 but has been delayed while the high court considers the immunity question.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Jul 01, 6:41 AM 5 key takeaways from arguments heard in April
The high court in April heard historic arguments on whether former President Donald Trump can be criminally prosecuted related to his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss.
Trump denies all wrongdoing and insists he should have “absolute immunity” for any “official acts” while in office.
Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) makes a statement at the House Oversight and Accountability Committee meeting at the Rayburn House Office Building on June 11, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Jemal Countess/Getty Images for Court Accountability)
(WASHINGTON) — Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., said Sunday that Democrats are “having a serious conversation” about what to do after President Joe Biden’s debate performance — a contrast to comments from other high-ranking members of the party.
“Obviously, there was a big problem with Joe Biden’s debate performance, and there is also just a tremendous reservoir of affection and love for Joe Biden in our party,” Raskin said during an appearance on MSNBC weekend show Velshi, with host Ali Velshi. “So, this makes it a difficult situation for everybody, but there are very honest and serious and rigorous conversations taking place at every level of our party because it is a political party, and we have differences in point of view.”
Raskin said that holding dialogue about a candidate is “what a real political party does,” and stands in contrast with the process of the Republican party.
“I mean, if you compare that to the nonexistent dialogue and conversation that took place in the Republican party after Donald Trump’s criminal conviction on 34 counts, it’s remarkable,” Raskin said. “And so, we’re having a serious conversation about what to do.”
Raskin said Democrats will be united at their upcoming Democratic National Convention.
“One thing I can tell you is that regardless of what President Biden decides, our party is going to be unified, and our party also needs him at the very center of our deliberations in our campaign,” Raskin said. “So, whether he’s the candidate or someone else is the candidate, he is going to be the keynote speaker at our convention. He will be the figure that we rally around to move forward and beat the forces of authoritarianism and reaction in the country.”
Biden’s debate performance on Thursday has been widely acknowledged as a significant blow to his reelection campaign, with many raising alarm that he legitimized Republican attacks claiming the 81-year-old is too old and frail to be president. One unnamed House Democrat described it as a “f—— disaster.”
Although many Democrats acknowledged the debate did not go well for Biden, most have maintained that he should stay in the race.
In an interview with ABC News’ This Week, Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del. insisted that Biden is the only candidate who can beat Trump in November.
“The stakes of this race couldn’t be higher, and the only Democrat who’s ever beaten Donald Trump is Joe Biden. He is our candidate for November, and he has the best shot to beat him,” he said.
Democratic House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-NY, said Sunday that Biden’s debate performance “was a setback.”
“But of course, I believe that a setback is nothing more than a setup for a comeback,” he said on MSNBC’s The Weekend. And the reality is, Joe Biden has confronted and had to come back from tragedy, trials, from tribulations throughout his entire life.”
Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., took a similar stance Sunday.
“It’s not about performance in terms of a debate, it’s about performance in a presidency,” she told Dana Bash on CNN’s State of the Union, touting some of Biden’s accomplishments over the years.
At a rally in North Carolina on Friday, Biden admitted he performed poorly at the debate, but defended himself for staying in the race.
“Folks, I don’t walk as easy as I used to. I don’t speak as smoothly as I used to. I don’t debate as well as I used to, but … I know how to tell the truth. I know right from wrong, and I know how to do this job,” he told the roaring crowd. “I know, like millions of Americans know, when you get knocked down, you get back up.”
A senior campaign aide told ABC News that the president is “absolutely” not considering dropping out of the race.
(WASHINGTON) — The Supreme Court justices will meet on Monday for a final day of opinions and are expected to issue a blockbuster decision on whether a former president is shielded from criminal liability for “official acts” taken while in the White House.
In the case, Donald Trump is claiming such immunity to try to quash the federal election subversion prosecution brought by special counsel Jack Smith.
Smith charged Trump with four felony counts, including conspiracy to defraud the United States and conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, over his efforts to hold onto power after his 2020 election loss. Trump pleaded not guilty and has denied any wrongdoing. The trial was set to start on March 4 but has been delayed while the high court considers the immunity question.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Jul 01, 6:41 AM 5 key takeaways from arguments heard in April
The high court in April heard historic arguments on whether former President Donald Trump can be criminally prosecuted related to his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss.
Trump denies all wrongdoing and insists he should have “absolute immunity” for any “official acts” while in office.
(WASHINGTON) — Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., a top ally to President Joe Biden and the national co-chair of his reelection campaign, insisted the president is the only Democrat who can defeat former President Donald Trump later this year despite his debate performance Thursday.
Coons cited Biden’s 2020 victory to repeatedly dismiss concerns from editorial boards and other writers worrying about Biden’s ability to defeat Trump after concerns over the president’s age spiked during his halting debate delivery.
“It is always a bad bet to bet against Joe Biden. I was with him when he announced in Philadelphia in 2019, and most of my colleagues said, ‘Oh, he’s too centrist, he’s too white, he’s too moderate. And I was with him in New Hampshire when folks counted him out in the primaries, and I was with him when he was sworn in as president,” he told “This Week” co-anchor Jonathan Karl.
“The stakes of this race couldn’t be higher, and the only Democrat who’s ever beaten Donald Trump is Joe Biden. He is our candidate for November and he has the best shot to beat him,” he added.
When pressed by Karl on whether he truly believes Biden is the only Democrat who can win in November, Coons responded, “I think he’s the only Democrat who can beat Donald Trump.”
Coons’ boasts come as the chorus for Biden’s withdrawal from the race grows from Democrats and outside observers.
Biden’s halting performance Thursday, which included meandering answers and a slack-jawed appearance as he listened to Trump’s answers, underscored what polls show are significant voter worries about his age (he’s 81) and fitness for office, including from supporters.
“Mr. Biden has said that he is the candidate with the best chance of taking on this threat of tyranny and defeating it. His argument rests largely on the fact that he beat Mr. Trump in 2020,” The New York Times Editorial Board wrote. “That is no longer a sufficient rationale for why Mr. Biden should be the Democratic nominee this year.”
“I cannot remember a more heartbreaking moment in American presidential campaign politics in my lifetime,” columnist Thomas Friedman wrote, adding that Biden, a “a good man and a good president, has no business running for reelection.”
Biden’s campaign has vociferously pushed back on that pressure, insisting that Biden will remain in the race and that Trump, who spewed multiple falsehoods during the debate, had a worse showing.
To beef up its claims, the campaign is also releasing strong fundraising numbers as the days go on, including saying Sunday that it has raised more than $33 million since Thursday.
The president also gave a stronger defense of his record during a campaign rally in North Carolina on Friday, though that event drew significantly fewer eyeballs than a national debate simulcast across major television networks seen by more than 50 million viewers, according to Nielsen data.
The most prominent Democrats, though, have yet to defect. Multiple governors and Vice President Kamala Harris, all viewed as future presidential hopefuls, have come out in line behind Biden, which Coons contrasted with Trump, who has not won the support of many of his top aides from his administration.
When pressed on if Biden’s aides are to blame for his faulty performance, Coons did not shy away from how Biden came across but said nobody would be able to pressure the president out of the race.
“I think it was a weak debate performance by President Biden. He had a scratchy, rough voice. He answered a few questions in ways that were not the most forceful, but I think side by side, Donald Trump had a horrifying debate performance,” Coons said. “I do think it’s for Joe Biden to make any decision about his campaign, his debate prep, his path forward.”
(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden’s campaign on Saturday night, in a fundraising appeal to supporters, said the president dropping out would only “lead to weeks of chaos” and leave the eventual replacement weakened ahead of a November faceoff with former President Donald Trump.
“The bedwetting brigade is calling for Joe Biden to ‘drop out.’ That is the best possible way for Donald Trump to win and us to lose,” Biden deputy campaign manager Rob Flaherty argued in the email to supporters.
“First of all: Joe Biden is going to be the Democratic nominee, period. End of story. Voters voted. He won overwhelmingly,” Flaherty added. “And if he were to drop out, it would lead to weeks of chaos, internal foodfighting, and a bunch of candidates who limp into a brutal floor fight at the convention, all while Donald Trump has time to speak to American voters uncontested.”
He continued: “All of that would be in service of a nominee who would go into a general election in the weakest possible position with zero dollars in their bank account. You want a highway to losing? It’s that.”
Flaherty’s email was framed around seven responses to tell “your panicked aunt, your MAGA uncle, or some self-important Podcasters” following Biden’s poor debate showing, and amid calls for him to step aside.
Late Friday, the New York Times editorial board, which endorsed Biden in the 2020 general election matchup with Trump, said the president should drop out, saying his debate appearance was “the shadow of a great public servant.”
“Mr. Biden has been an admirable president… But the greatest public service Mr. Biden can now perform is to announce that he will not continue to run for re-election,” the board wrote.
“The president’s performance cannot be written off as a bad night or blamed on a supposed cold, because it affirmed concerns that have been mounting for months or even years,” the board wrote.
By staying in the race, they argued Biden was “engaged in a reckless gamble.” The campaign swiftly brushed off the board.
“The last time Joe Biden lost the New York Times editorial board’s endorsement it turned out pretty well for him,” Biden campaign co-chair Cedric Richmond said in a statement shared with ABC News on Friday.
(In 2020, the Time’s editorial board endorsed both Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota for the Democratic nomination for president, which Biden later secured.)
At a string of fundraisers on Friday and Saturday, Biden sought to reassure donors he had what it took to stay in the race, vowing to fight harder.
Biden gave a forceful speech to supporters at a rally in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Friday, “Folks, I don’t walk as easy as I used to. I don’t speak as smoothly as I used to. I don’t debate as well as I used to, but … I know how to tell the truth. I know right from wrong, and I know how to do this job,” he told the roaring crowd. “I know, like millions of Americans know, when you get knocked down, you get back up.”
“It wasn’t my best debate ever as Barack pointed out,” Biden said at a fundraiser hosted in Red Bank, New Jersey, according to the pool reporters in the room, later adding, “I understand the concern after the debate. I get it. I didn’t have a great night, but I’m going to be fighting harder.”
And publicly, Democratic officials have circled the wagons around Biden. California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Thursday night after the debate that he “will never turn [his] back on President Biden,” while New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, who hosted the fundraiser in his state on Saturday, told Biden “We are all with you 1,000%,” and called him “America’s comeback kid.”
However, some discussions have been had privately among some party leaders about how to convince sitting senators to have a frank conversation with the president about bowing out.
Other than the argument that chaos would ensure with a Biden withdrawal, the note included asking supporters to tell friends that despite the “rough” start to the debate, “voters saw what a threat Donald Trump is” and that “the long-term impact of debates is overstated.”
“And lastly, but most importantly, you’ve got to keep the faith,” Flaherty said toward the end of his email, adding that the campaign was going to “keep our heads down and do the work.”
(WASHINGTON) — Despite death threats and backlash from White House advisers over his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic during the Trump administration, Dr. Anthony Fauci said he never considered resigning.
“I just felt that we have to have somebody there who is actually getting the correct information to the American public,” Fauci told “This Week” co-anchor Jonathan Karl on Sunday.
“I have felt, and still do, a very strong responsibility to the American public, not to any administration or any person, but to the American public.”
The former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) said he was “afraid that despite the pressures and all the somewhat unusual things that were going on, if I did walk away from it, there would be little opportunity to get the correct, potentially life-saving information to the American public.”
Fauci chronicled his decades-long public health career in a new memoir, “On Call: A Doctor’s Journey in Public Service.” His book comes after he retired in 2022 as director of NIAID, a position he had held since 1984.
During that time, Fauci advised seven presidents and guided the nation’s response to infectious disease outbreaks including AIDS, Zika, Ebola and COVID-19.
The last president he served under was Joe Biden. After a debate showing that has prompted calls from several Democratic pundits, opinion writers and The New York Times Editorial Board for Biden to step aside as the party’s nominee this cycle, Karl asked Fauci if he was “surprised” by the president’s performance Thursday night.
“I don’t want to comment on anything that would have any political implication. … The one thing I can say and feel comfortable about is I have dealt with President Biden, and in my dealings with him, it’s been really very positive,” Fauci said. “He asked probing questions, he’s right on point on things. So, my personal experience has been quite positive with him.”
When asked by Karl why someone in their 80s — Biden is 81 — would want to serve as president for another four years, Fauci said he thinks it is “an individual choice that you really can’t generalize.”
“You have to take each individual person,” he continued. “You know, how they feel, what they feel they can do. You know, what their passion is, what their energy is, those are the kinds of things.”
Despite retiring from his government position, Fauci has remained a lightning rod for mainly Republican critics of how the COVID-19 pandemic was handled. Testifying before a House subcommittee earlier this month, Fauci grew emotional describing the death threats that he and his family received during his time as NIAID director.
During that hearing, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., called for Fauci to be put in jail. “That man does not deserve to have a license. As a matter of fact, it should be revoked, and he belongs in jail,” she said.
When asked about Greene’s remarks on Sunday morning, Fauci spoke about the harm that he said can come from such comments.
“I mean, that’s bizarre, and that bizarreness leads to other crazies threatening and saying things that are also inappropriate,” he told Karl.
Karl also asked Fauci about comments former White House chief strategist and longtime Trump ally Steve Bannon made on his show “War Room” about Fauci and FBI Director Christopher Wray in late 2020 suggesting that they be beheaded and their heads be put “on pikes.” At the time, Twitter (now X) suspended Bannon’s podcast account, and YouTube took down the episode that seemed to imply Fauci and Wray be beheaded.
In an interview with Bannon that also aired on “This Week” Sunday, Karl pressed Bannon about those comments.
“You’re saying at a time when Anthony Fauci and his family are facing death threats, when Christopher Wray and FBI agents all the way down are facing death threats, and you’re going out and talking about putting their heads on pikes?” Karl pressed.
“A total metaphor. Anybody understands that,” Bannon responded. “That’s, that’s your overreach, by the way. They banned us, I think, on Twitter. They banned us on Facebook for that. And hey, guess what? The show got even bigger.”
On Sunday, Fauci criticized Bannon’s response, saying that his words went beyond metaphorical speech.
“These people that say they can say anything they want but it’s a figure of speech,” Fauci said. “Don’t buy that. That’s nonsense. Words matter.”
(WASHINGTON) — Democrats described President Joe Biden’s debate performance on Thursday as anywhere from “wobbly” to “disappointing” to a “disaster.” Now, they’re scrambling to figure out if he can bounce back.
Biden meandered through answers Thursday, seemingly losing his train of thought at points and sporting a slack-jawed, glazed-over expression during former President Donald Trump’s answers. The split-screen was described in brutal terms by Democrats who feared the debate compounded on what polls show are undeniable voter concerns over Biden’s age and fitness for office.
The president’s path to reelection could now hinge, in part, on the tall task of recovering from the debate and reassuring voters that despite his halting performance, he has what it takes to handle another four years in office.
Presidential historian Mark Updegrove singled out one Biden stumble when he appeared lost in an answer about tax reform, ultimately concluding with the confounding remark that “we beat Medicare,” as “the worst debate moment in U.S. presidential and vice-presidential history” and said the road to recovery would be difficult — but not impossible.
“I think this is going to be relatively difficult to turn around,” Updegrove said, “but miracles occasionally happen in politics.”
The Democratic frenzy in the hours after Thursday night’s debate has been fierce, with some operatives bringing up the prospect of replacing Biden on the 2024 ticket at this summer’s party convention.
Two aides to politicians spoken of as future presidential candidates told ABC News that outreach from worried party members has been significant, and Democratic offices on Capitol Hill received angry calls from constituents Friday over Biden’s performance, according to one senior congressional Democratic source.
For now, allies are publicly sticking with him.
“I’m with our nominee Joe Biden who wakes up every day thinking about America’s working families, not Donald Trump – a 34-time convicted felon, adjudicated rapist, and congenital liar who spent last night spewing nothing but lies,” said Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, spoken of as a possible future Democratic presidential contender.
“There’s no one who saw the debate last night and thinks that President Biden had a great night. I also know there’s no one who can look at the record of the Trump administration and think that Donald Trump had a good presidency,” Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, the subject of similar whispers, said to reporters Friday. “I think we’re going to have another four years of President Biden and Vice President [Kamala] Harris.”
Some Democrats pointed to the 2022 Pennsylvania Senate race, when now-Sen. John Fetterman, D, had what was universally decried as a terrible debate after suffering a stroke only to end up defeating Republican Mehmet Oz later that year.
“No one knows more than me that a rough debate is not the sum total of the person and their record,” Fetterman wrote on X. “Chill the f*** out.”
Privately, however, Democratic operatives said they’re clamoring for Biden to shake things up after Thursday’s debate.
One senior Democratic strategist expressed skepticism that Biden’s current team “will admit a mistake” and suggested, “perhaps it’s time for some staff changes and infusing the inner circle with fresh perspective.”
“Be prepared that there may not be another debate, which means finding another way to demonstrate he’s more than up to the job,” the person said. “Would do more to let Joe be Joe rather than trying to cram him with facts and figures.”
Other operatives specifically said Biden should blitz the airwaves with sit-down interviews, including in hostile territory — a tactic the president hasn’t adopted since taking office but that party members say is unavoidable now.
“He needs to get out in front of people every day for the next week, conduct live and unscripted interviews, and make the Sunday talk show rounds. This isn’t a time for complacency and the faith that a bad performance fades on its own. It fades when it is replaced by something else,” said Jim Kessler, the co-founder of center-left think tank Third Way.
“He’d have to do it across a lot of venues,” added another adviser to a politician discussed as a future presidential contender. “He might even have to do one on Fox.”
Experts also predicted that the debate’s timing could help Biden turn the page. Thursday’s event happened unprecedentedly early in an election cycle, and, with over four months to Election Day, countless news cycles could bury the debate if sensational enough.
“In some ways, the early debate could be beneficial for the comeback narrative,” said Aaron Kall, director of debate for the University of Michigan’s Debate Program. “I think because it’s so early, that could decrease the overall impact of a debate on the election and give opportunities other extraneous events, black swan events, to totally drown out the effect of a bad first performance.”
Biden is already working to alleviate concerns, addressing the debate at a rally in North Carolina Friday in which he offered a more vociferous defense of his record than he did on Thursday.
“I know I’m not a young man, to state the obvious,” he told a Raleigh crowd. “I don’t walk as easy as I used to. I don’t speak as smoothly as I used to. I don’t debate as well as I used to. But I know what I do know: I know how to tell the truth. I know right from wrong. And I know how to do this job.”
The Biden campaign also touted a $14 million grassroots fundraising haul from debate day heading into Friday morning. It also said the hour after the debate was its best fundraising hour since the campaign’s launch in April 2023.
For some, though, Biden’s rally Friday underscored his Thursday performance.
“Where was this last night? Why wasn’t that energy there last night?” asked rallygoer Jenny Ackerman.
And some Democrats were outright pessimistic that the debate’s political damage wouldn’t be permanent.
“I don’t think it blows over,” a source familiar with the Biden campaign’s strategy said.
“Remember the Hindenburg!” added one Democratic donor of the debate.
Underscoring the damage dealt from the debate, Senate Republicans’ campaign arm swiftly released an ad splicing Democratic Senate candidates’ praise for Biden’s fitness for office with moments from the debate when the president stumbled. The made-for-television gaffes are likely to be featured in GOP attacks across the airwaves throughout the year, with Republicans virtually dancing over the debate’s impact on both Biden and down-ballot Democrats.
“Senate Democrats have spent years propping up Joe Biden despite his obvious mental deficiencies, now the world can see he isn’t he fit for the job. This disaster is on their hands,” said National Republican Senatorial Committee spokesman Philip Letsou.
The more pessimistic Democrats pointed to the potency of those attacks to sound the alarm that the damage may have been done.
“It’s hard to unsee what we all saw so starkly and vividly. Think of it this way. Biden may be the most experienced pilot in the world, but would you be comfortable flying in an airplane Captain Biden was at the controls of after what you saw last night?” asked on Democratic pollster.
When asked what Biden could do to calm the passengers, the person just replied, “Turn over the controls to a younger, experienced and competent pilot.”
(NEW YORK) — On Monday, Steve Bannon will be behind bars in federal prison, but the ex-Trump White House adviser said Friday he’s feeling great and has no regrets about defying Congress to avoid talking about his role in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol by a pro-Trump mob.
In fact, Bannon told ABC “This Week” co-anchor Jonathan Karl that he considers himself a “political prisoner” and that his four-month sentence will only make his influence grow.
“I’m a political prisoner … It won’t change me. It will not suppress my voice. My voice will not be suppressed when I’m there,” he told Karl.
Bannon is set to report to federal prison on Monday after the Supreme Court denied a request Friday to remain out of prison while he continues to appeal his contempt of Congress conviction.
Bannon was sentenced to four months in prison in October 2022 after being found guilty of defying a subpoena from the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.
After Bannon was sentenced, U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols agreed to postpone the jail term while Bannon appealed the conviction. Last month the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld his conviction and Nichols ordered Bannon on June 6 to report to prison on July 1.
Watch more of Jonathan Karl’s interview with Steve Bannon on Sunday’s episode of “This Week.”
Bannon told Karl he still has no regrets about defying the House Jan. 6 committee’s subpoena and is looking to appeal the court decision.
“If it took me going to prison to finally get the House to start to move, to start to delegitimize the illegitimate J6 committee, then, hey, guess what, my going to prison is worth it,” he said.
The January 6th committee was established by a House resolution that passed along party lines in 2021 by a vote of 222-190. Two Republicans, Illinois’ Adam Kinzinger and Wyoming’s Liz Cheney, joined Democrats in supporting the measure and later served on the committee.
