The Washington, DC, trial date in the federal election subversion case against former President Donald Trump has been postponed because of ongoing appeals about the power of the presidency, according to a new court order in the case.
The trial date was originally set for March 4, but the case was paused as a federal appeals court considers arguments from Trump that he should be immune from prosecution because of his role as president leading up to the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol. The appeals court has yet to issue a ruling on the matter of immunity.
Though not official until US District Judge Tanya Chutkan’s order Friday, it became increasingly less likely that the March trial date would hold. In January, Trump’s team complained that prosecutors were continuing to submit court filings despite the case’s pause, and Chutkan warned Smith’s team that they should not continue without her permission.
The delay is a win for the former president, who has repeatedly worked to delay the trial until after the 2024 presidential election, but it isn’t yet clear if he’ll be successful in holding off the trial until after November’s vote.
Two Trump advisers told CNN that the former president’s team will continue to push for further delays and that its key focus in the latest court order is that Chutkan has not set a new trial date.
A delay was also anticipated by the parties and even court officials – especially as each day has gone by without a ruling from the DC Circuit on presidential immunity. The court heard the case almost a month ago and can take weeks if not months to rule. It’s likely that the ruling from the DC Circuit will be appealed to the Supreme Court.
As part of her order Friday, Chutkan also said that the prospective jurors, who had been asked…
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