Trump Says He Shouldn’t Be Tried with an Election Pending
Plus: An Outbreak of Republican Truth-Telling
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KIM WEHLE: Trump Says He Shouldn’t Be Tried with an Election Pending.
ON MONDAY, DONALD TRUMP FILED an application with the U.S. Supreme Court seeking an indefinite stay of the January 6th criminal trial that had been scheduled for March 4 in Washington, D.C. Trump’s request to halt the trial is the precursor to his next move: an anticipated appeal of the decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit rejecting his bid for absolute, king-like immunity from prosecution for acts taken while president. The three-judge appellate panel’s ruling has been widely heralded as beautifully reasoned, grounded on sound historical scholarship, and legally bulletproof—which should give the Supreme Court comfort that it can sit this one out and focus on other important matters. Still, there’s no telling what this Court will do with the immunity question.
But Trump’s latest filing is noteworthy for an entirely different reason. In it, he unveils a long-anticipated argument—but one that has not yet appeared prominently in his legal filings—for why the four criminal cases against him should not go forward: The November election is coming.
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A.B. STODDARD: An Outbreak of Republican Truth-Telling.
LAST WEEK A GOP SENATOR suggested that a president could defy a Supreme Court ruling and that Congress should be able to decide presidential elections. A Republican House leader agreed with him that Congress could reject electors. Both are dangerous lies.
A bipartisan agreement to fix an unprecedented crisis at the border was killed by Republicans at the behest of Donald Trump, who wants to campaign on problems and opposes a solution.
MIKE MADRID: Will Illegal Immigration Drive GOP Turnout as Much as Abortion Has Driven Democrats?
EVER SINCE THE SUPREME COURT HANDED DOWN the Dobbs decision, Republicans have been losing elections faster than Donald Trump has been losing court cases. This is due in large part to the exodus from the GOP of female voters: Conservative-leaning independent and Republican women had been voting for Democrats in growing numbers since Trump’s takeover of the party in 2016, but the overturning of Roe v. Wade in June 2022 set the trend on hyperdrive, dashing Republicans’ hopes for a red wave in the 2022 midterms and in numerous special elections since then. Republicans, keenly aware that the blowback from women is likely to jeopardize their White House and congressional fortunes this November, have been scrambling to find a foil to the powerful issue of abortion rights. They think they’ve found it in illegal immigration.
🚨OVERTIME🚨
Happy Mardi Gras Tuesday! It seems Tucker Carlson forgot the first rule of politics: no silly hats. Mardi Gras hats are fine, obviously.
🎵On the Jukebox…🎵 Philip Glass - Opening
Who Speaks for the President? Depends on Whom You Ask. (NYT)
With Huy Fong’s iconic sriracha, a Vietnamese refugee created a new American consumer category… then lost it to Tabasco (Fortune).
Michael Cohen… Does not have nice things to say about the incoming RNC co-Chair. (I also have some thoughts at CenterClip… who is strangling the cat? I wonder.)
People are going to be surprised… About the strength of the Democratic bench, argues Sarah Longwell.
A private Moon mission hopes to succeed… where others have failed (The Economist)
The Community-Building Curmudgeon… Holly Berkeley-Fletcher interviews JVL(!)
Meanwhile, in Cleveland… City of Cleveland forgiving almost a billion dollars in homeowner loans borrowed between 2005 and 20. (KOLO8)
Biden Had His Worst Week… Then Trump Made Him Look Competent, by Matt Lewis at The Daily Beast.
Spring Break! Wooo! The Kennedy campaign is being run like a “spring break party cruise…” (Mediaite)
Welcome to the Anxiety Election… Writes Molly Jong-Fast at Vanity Fair.
💔 Abolish Valentine’s Day… Argues our pal Matt Labash, whose newsletter you should treat yourself to this holiday (celebrated or not!)
Jon Stewart tackles… The Trump-Biden rematch that nobody wants.
Elly’s Writing Theme… How The Beatles inspired the score of the new movie Argylle.
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