Trying Times

This Week in Democracy

• Justice Department Special Counsel?Jack Smith?urged?the?U.S. Supreme Court?to reject former?President Trump’s?latest immunity claim.?Smith’s brief rejects the argument that Trump is immune from prosecution?in the federal election interference case. Trump’s claim was?strongly rejected by a federal appeals court?in February. The Supreme Court will hear the case on?April 25. ???READ:?The federal charges, explained ?

• Attorneys for Trump?made three attempts to delay?his?upcoming criminal trial in New York.?Each attempt was denied. The former president’s trial about falsifying business records and hiding information from voters in 2016?is scheduled to begin on Monday. ?
• Attorneys for the?State Bar of California?asked a judge?to reject?John Eastman’s?request to?reactivate his law license.?Last month’s recommendation that he be disbarred?shows that Eastman “demonstrated a willingness to misrepresent facts, violate the law, and pursue frivolous claims on behalf of clients,” prosecutors argued. ???READ:?Backgrounder: John Eastman’s ethics trial

State of the States

In Georgia,?Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis?asked?the Georgia Court of Appeals?to reject the latest attempt to delay the election interference case. Willis urged the court to refuse to hear an appeal seeking to reverse Judge Scott McAfee’s ruling that she can continue prosecuting the case. On behalf of legal and ethics experts, States United?filed a brief?arguing that the Court of Appeals should refuse to accept the appeal and let the trial court’s ruling stand.

In the News

• NBC News:?Trump official Jeffrey Clark likely violated ethics rules with 2020 election theories, D.C. Bar panel finds Gillian Feiner,?senior counsel at the?States United Democracy Center,?said that the board’s preliminary finding “is another step towards holding Clark accountable” for conduct that undermined democracy and the rule of law. “We’ve already seen other attorneys like Rudy Giuliani, John Eastman, and Jenna Ellis face consequences for their actions concerning the 2020 election, and today’s decision signals that Jeffrey Clark is up next,”?Feiner?said. “No one is above the law.” ?

• WIRED:?Election Workers Are Already Burned Out—and on High Alert Research conducted by the nonpartisan election integrity group?States United Action?found 201 election deniers currently serving as state legislators in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, the seven states that pushed fake electors following the 2020 vote. Forty-nine of these legislators,?States United Action?tells WIRED, “sit on committees that deal most directly with election-related bills and/or hold legislative leadership positions that allow them to influence those committees and bills.” ?

• 12News:?Democracy watchdog identifies 31 'election deniers' at AZ Legislature “Election deniers in state legislatures have the potential to undermine the will of the voters,” said?Kelly Rader,?Research Director for?[States United].?“We also think there is a connection between the election denier rhetoric, the conspiracy theories about our elections, and the potential for violence in and around elections.” ?

• The Associated Press:?Judge rejects Trump’s First Amendment challenge to indictment in Georgia election case ?

• The New York Times:?Georgia’s Lieutenant Governor to Face Inquiry for Role as Fake Trump Elector ?

• The New York Times:?Capitol Police Hire Special Prosecutors to Handle Rise in Threats Against Congress ?

• The Washington Post:?New voting laws in swing states could shape 2024 election ?

• CNN:?RNC under Lara Trump spreads ‘massive fraud’ claims about 2020 election ?

• Stateline:?Republicans scrutinize voting rolls and ramp up for mass challenges ahead of election ?

• The Detroit News:?Pushing election fraud theories, nonprofit spent $1.2 million in Michigan in 2022 ?

• Las Vegas Review-Journal:?Lawsuit to block Nevada election worker protection law dismissed

Recommended Reading

In an?op-ed in the Erie Times-News, Secretary of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Al Schmidt details some of the steps his office is taking to make sure that the state’s elections—including the primaries on April 23—are fair, safe, and secure.

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