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Donald Trump confronts a newly revised indictment focused squarely on his post-election actions as a presidential candidate instead of as president after the Supreme Court’s ruling on presidential immunity read more
 "New indictment against Trump in election interference case after presidential immunity ruling")
A new indictment has been filed against Former US president Donald Trump in the election interference case. Reuters
Former US President Donald Trump faced a revised federal indictment on Tuesday, accusing him of attempting to overturn his 2020 election loss through illegal means.
The charges, though similar to those previously brought against him, have been narrowed in response to a recent Supreme Court ruling that grants former presidents broad immunity from criminal prosecution for actions taken while in office.
The updated indictment, which continues to allege a multi-part conspiracy to block the certification of Trump’s election defeat, now centers on his actions as a political candidate rather than his role as president at the time.
The Supreme Court’s July 1 decision, which suggests Trump is presumptively immune from prosecution for actions within his constitutional powers as president, led prosecutors to revise their approach.
Focus on Trump’s actions as a candidate
Notably, the revised indictment omits previous claims that Trump sought to pressure the US Justice Department to overturn the election results after the high court found that Trump could not be prosecuted for that conduct.
The indictment retains allegations that Trump urged then-Vice President Mike Pence to use his position during the January 6, 2021 congressional certification to reject electoral votes from key battleground states.
The indictment also leans heavily on testimony from witnesses outside the federal government, such as former Arizona House Speaker Rusty Bowers, who reportedly faced pressure from Trump and a co-conspirator to convene a special legislative session based on unfounded claims of voter fraud.
Trump’s response
In response, Trump took to his Truth Social platform to call the new indictment a witch hunt and an attempt to interfere with the elections. He said the Supreme Court’s immunity ruling should lead to the entire case being thrown out, saying, “Smith rewrote the exact same case in an effort to circumvent the Supreme Court Decision.”
Trump has pleaded not guilty to the initial charges, labeling them as politically motivated attempts to block his return to power.
US District Judge Tanya Chutkan is expected to rule in the coming weeks on which aspects of the case might be dismissed due to the Supreme Court’s immunity decision.
With inputs from agencies
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English (US) ·