Maroc - RAWSTORY.COM - Raw Story - 27/Jun 17:12

Supreme Court declines to rule on Trump immunity before debate

The Supreme Court has been issuing rulings this week — and many expected the Court to have decided whether former President Donald Trump is immune from prosecution by now. But Thursday night is the debate, and the Trump immunity ruling is nowhere to be seen.The Court issued a number of high-profile rulings this week, including one on the Idaho abortion case and one about "gratuities" for politicians. The Court's session isn't over, but no more rulings will be issued Thursday, so a Trump immunity ruling could come Friday or next week. But that would be too late for the first CNN presidential debate.If the ruling came out before the debate, it was sure to be a major topic Thursday night, experts said. Grant Reeher, director of the Campbell Public Affairs Institute at Syracuse University, told The Hill that he "would definitely expect that to get worked into the conversation or even the moderators to pose a question on it.”READ MORE: ‘Hidden Hand of Politics’: Law Professor Scorches SCOTUS for Slow-Walking Trump ImmunityBut without that ruling, it's a question as to whether or not it will be brought up at all. In its debate preview, The Washington Post doesn't even mention the immunity question or the Supreme Court itself at all. The Court was a major topic in 2020, with questions of whether President Joe Biden would expand the Court to counteract Trump's naming of three conservative justices during his term. Though Biden had been critical of the current Court, he has continually said he believes expanding it would be an error, according to Reuters.The upcoming ruling applies to two federal cases against Trump. One is the election interference case, alleging he attempted to undermine the 2020 election and take power illegally, and the other is the classified documents case. The latter is unlikely to be decided before the 2024 election, due to Judge Aileen Cannon dragging her feet and indefinitely delaying the trial.The election interference case, which also includes Trump's alleged responsibility for the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol building, was initially expected to be decided before this year's election.However, in late February, the Supreme Court agreed to rule on whether or not Trump is immune from prosecution over anything he did while president. Waiting for the Court has put his other cases on hold, meaning neither is likely to be decided before election day.The question hinges on a reading of the Constitution, which shields sitting presidents from lawsuits involving anything they did as an official duty. Trump argues that everything he did was an official act.Critics, however, point out that this argument would mean that disgraced former President Richard Nixon would be shielded from prosecution over the Watergate scandal. Watergate involved Nixon's aides bugging the Democratic Party's offices in the Watergate hotel in order to help his reelection campaign.Because Nixon resigned and was immediately pardoned by his successor, Gerald Ford, Nixon never went before the court in the Watergate case. However, that didn't shield his aides; there were 69 indictments and 48 convictions connected to Watergate.