logo
episode-header-image
Sep 2023
40m 21s

Trump’s Presidential Immunity Defense wi...

THE LAWFARE INSTITUTE
About this episode

Some time soon, former President Donald Trump is expected to file a motion in U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan’s courtroom to dismiss the Jan. 6 case against him based on some theory of presidential immunity. In a recent piece for Lawfare, our very own Legal Fellow Saraphin Dhanani and Editor-in-Chief Benjamin Wittes write, “The bottom line is that this defense is a bit of a moon shot for Trump, but it’s not a crazy moon shot.”

Lawfare Managing Editor Tyler McBrien sat down with Saraphin and Ben to talk through their article, “The Trump Defense, Part II: The Presidential Immunity Gambit.” They discussed the general contours of the defense’s argument and strategy, the prosecution’s likely counterarguments, and all the murkiness and unknowns in between. They also talked about how, even if Judge Chutkan does not accept Trump’s immunity defense—and even if the appellate courts ultimately affirm her judgment on that score—the immunity defense could still be useful to the former president. 

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/lawfare.


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Yesterday
Lawfare Daily: Far-Right Gains and a Political Reckoning in Germany
On today's podcast, Executive Editor Natalie Orpett sits down with Constanze Stelzenmüller, Director and Fritz Stern Chair of the Center on the United States and Europe at the Brookings Institution, to discuss what’s going on in the German political scene, where a far-right party ... Show More
57m 7s
Sep 15
Lawfare Daily: ‘A Whole Other Country,’ with Zoe Kurland and Terence O’Rourke
On today’s episode, Lawfare Managing Editor Tyler McBrien sits down with Zoe Kurland, Senior Producer at Marfa Public Radio, and Terence O’Rourke, an attorney based in Houston, Texas. They discuss “A Whole Other Country,” the Edward R. Murrow Award-winning six-part podcast series ... Show More
59m 54s
Sep 14
Lawfare Daily: The Trials of the Trump Administration, September 11
In a conversation on YouTube, Lawfare Editor in Chief Benjamin Wittes sat down with Associate Editor Peter Beck and Senior Editors Anna Bower, Eric Columbus, Molly Roberts, and Roger Parloff to discuss an Afghan legal permanent resident deported less than 2 months after case is f ... Show More
1h 35m
Recommended Episodes
Jan 2024
Trump goes all in on immunity
For this bonus episode of Trump's Trials, guest host Sacha Pfeiffer is joined by NPR Justice Correspondent Carrie Johnson. The DC Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments from federal prosecutors and former President Donald Trump's legal team on the question of whether Trump ... Show More
4m 36s
Jan 2024
Trump immunity appeal: debating the arguments
Trump’s lawyer is forced to concede that a president could be prosecuted, if first convicted by the Senate, and that there is no absolute presidential immunity covering all circumstances. Our panel of legal experts discuss today’s historic courtroom showdown and whether prosecuti ... Show More
42m 35s
Jan 2024
BONUS: The Full Presidential Immunity Hearing
<p>Former President Donald Trump appeared in federal court Tuesday morning as his lawyers argued that he is immune from prosecution on charges to overturn the 2020 election. Listen to the full hearing here. </p> <p><p>Sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts to listen to this ... Show More
1h 15m
Jan 2024
Trump’s Case for Total Immunity
<p>Donald Trump has consistently argued that as a former president, he is immune from being charged with a crime for things he did while he was in office.</p><p>Adam Liptak, who covers the Supreme Court for The Times, explains what happened when Trump’s lawyers made that case in ... Show More
27m 40s
Apr 2024
Florida man wants immunity
You can beat the heat if you beat the charges too. Vox’s Ian Millhiser previews the Donald Trump immunity case going before the Supreme Court this week, and lawyer Jeffrey Green explains Trump’s role in a related case involving January 6 defendants. This episode was produced by A ... Show More
25m 57s
Oct 2023
Episode 45 - A Tale of Two Judges
<p>This week in Florida, Judge Aileen Cannon stays the trial calendar pending Trump’s motion for a delay due to CIPA section 4, and new reporting that Trump shared nuclear submarine capabilities with an Australian businessman. </p><p>In DC, Donald files a motion to dismiss all ch ... Show More
58m 20s
Apr 2024
Tomorrow: Supreme Court Hears Historic Immunity Case
Justices will be hearing oral arguments in his sweeping immunity case that could have profound implications for his legal fate and poses never-before-resolved questions about the powers of the presidency. Plus, a grand jury in Arizona has handed up an indictment against former Pr ... Show More
48m 18s