Trump protected by presidential immunity from being sued over election claims while in office
David Zimmermann
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A Pennsylvania judge ruled on Monday that former President Donald Trump is immune from being sued over 2020 election comments he made before leaving the White House.
Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas Judge Michael Erdos decided Trump “is entitled to presidential immunity” regardless of the validity of his allegations. While still in office, Trump expressed doubt as to the reliability of the presidential election results, claiming fraud occurred in Pennsylvania and several other states nearly three years ago.
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“Other legal proceedings may examine the propriety of his statements and actions while he was the President and whether, as the plaintiffs in this and other cases contend, it was this conduct which served as the actual threat to our democracy,” Erdos ruled, according to the Hill. “But this case is not the proper place to do so.”
The state judge said Trump’s immunity covers one of his tweets and additional comments he made from the White House.
“Here, then-President Trump’s Gettysburg remarks and his tweet were public,” Erdos wrote. “Moreover, the topic of these statements —claims from third parties and the President himself about irregularities in the Presidential election which on their face called into question the integrity of the election and whether now-President Joseph Biden had been duly elected — was undoubtedly a matter of great public concern.”
However, Trump’s election claims made after he left the presidency are not covered under the ruling. This includes a letter the former president wrote to the House Jan. 6 committee last October, in which he doubled down on his claims.
James Savage, a Pennsylvania election worker, filed two lawsuits against Trump for alleging Joe Biden stole the 2020 election. In the now-consolidated lawsuit, Savage said Trump and others conspired to defame him, accusations which caused him great stress. According to Savage, he received multiple death threats and suffered two heart attacks as a result of the statements.
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Alina Habba, Trump’s legal spokeswoman, said “we are pleased with the Court’s decision” this week.
“Today, the Court made it clear that it is well within the President’s discretion to address the integrity of our election without fear of liability,” she added. “We expect that the rest of Mr. Savage’s claims will similarly be disposed of as they are without merit.”