WASHINGTON – Federal prosecutors asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday to quickly rule on whether former President Donald Trump enjoys immunity from prosecution so that his trial on charges of conspiring to overturn the 2020 election can go ahead as scheduled.

“This case raises a fundamental question at the heart of our democracy: whether a former president is absolutely immune from federal prosecution for crimes committed while in office,” special counsel Jack Smith said in a filing with the nation’s highest court.

Smith asked the Supreme Court, which has a 6-3 conservative majority including three justices nominated by Trump, for an expedited decision.

“The United States recognizes that this is an extraordinary request,” the special counsel said. “This is an exceptional case.”

“It is of the utmost public importance that the defendant’s immunity claims be resolved as quickly as possible – and, if the defendant is not immune, that he receive a fair and expeditious trial on these charges,” Smith said.

The Supreme Court said it would expedite consideration of Smith’s request to take over the case and asked Trump’s lawyers to present their position on the special counsel’s request by December 20.

The historic trial against the former Republican president is scheduled to begin on March 4, 2024 in Washington.

Trump’s lawyers have repeatedly tried to delay the trial until after the November 2024 election, including by claiming that a former president enjoys “absolute immunity” and cannot be prosecuted for his actions in the White House.

U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, who is set to preside over the first criminal trial of a former president, rejected the immunity request on Dec. 1.

“Whatever immunities a sitting president may enjoy, the United States has only one chief executive at a time, and that position does not confer life freedom from prison,” Chutkan said.

“The defendant’s four years of service as commander-in-chief did not confer on him the divine right of kings to escape the criminal responsibility of his fellow citizens,” she added.

Lawyers for Trump, the front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, have appealed Chutkan’s ruling to a federal appeals court.

Smith is asking the Supreme Court to bypass the appeals court and hear the case itself if necessary.

“NO PERSON IS ABOVE THE LAW”

In his filing, Smith said, “A cornerstone of our constitutional order is that no one is above the law.”

“The force of this principle reaches its peak when, as here, a grand jury has indicted a former president for committing federal crimes designed to undermine the peaceful transfer of power to his lawfully elected successor,” the special counsel said.

“Nothing could be more vital to our democracy than that a president who abuses the electoral system to stay in office be held accountable for criminal behavior.”

A Trump spokesman condemned Smith’s actions, saying in a statement that there was “no reason to take this hoax to court other than to harm President Trump.”

Carl Tobias, a law professor at the University of Richmond, told AFP that Smith’s application was a rare case but made “compelling arguments.”

“Smith is essentially asserting that the future of the United States as a functioning democracy is at stake,” Tobias said.

Trump was impeached in August for attempting to change the results of the November 2020 election won by Democrat Joe Biden, which led to his supporters’ violent attack on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.

The former president is accused of disenfranchising American voters with his false claims that he won the election.

Smith also asked the Supreme Court to decide whether Trump’s prosecution violated the constitutional protection against double jeopardy – namely, that he be tried twice for the same crime.

Trump was impeached by the Democratic-majority House of Representatives for “incitement of insurrection” after the attack on the Capitol, but was acquitted by the Senate.

The nine justices of the Supreme Court will hold their next conference to hear new cases on January 5. The current court term is scheduled to end in June.