Thomas Raises Doubt over Smith’s Authority; Turley Discusses Immunity Arguments

Fox News contributor Jonathan Turley discussed the key takeaways from Supreme Court arguments regarding former President Donald Trump’s claims of presidential immunity during a nearly three-hour session. However, Justice Clarence Thomas raised another important issue – whether Special Counsel Jack Smith and his office have authority to bring charges against Trump at all. During the hearing, Trump attorney John Sauer acknowledged that they had not challenged this concern directly in their current Supreme Court case but agreed with former Attorney Generals William Barr’s III Meese and Michael Mukasey on this issue. They argued that Smith was never confirmed by the Senate as a U.S. Attorney or any other position, making his appointment unlawful. Federal prosecutions require persons appointed as federal officers to proper created federal offices who meet specific criteria for lawfulness. The crux of their argument is that because the special counsel exercises broad authority independent from the White House and attorney general, he’s far more powerful than anyone else without Senate confirmation. Meese and Mukasey stated that Smith’s appointment was unlawful as were all actions flowing from it, including his prosecution of Trump in both Florida and Washington D.C.. The Supreme Court is expected to rule on this matter before its term ends in June.