Trump’s team pleads not guilty in election interference case

The first hearing in former President Donald Trump’s election interference case occurred on Thursday in Washington, D.C., after it had been long delayed. Trump was not present in court, but his legal team entered into a not guilty plea deal to the charges brought against the Republican presidential nominee by special counsel Jack Smith.
The hearing allowed both sides to present their issues that must be resolved before trial. Due to the extent of the issues, Judge Tanya Chutkan said she has yet to decide on a trial date but will not allow the upcoming presidential election to pressure the case, adding that it “is not relevant here,” according to The New York Times. “That’s nothing I’m going to consider. … I am definitely not getting drawn into an election dispute.”
The other conflict facing the case is the U.S. Supreme Court’s July decision granting presidential immunity on official acts a president takes while in office.
Chutkan added that setting a date is “sort of an exercise in futility at this point,” acknowledging that if she makes a decision regarding immunity, it is likely to be appealed, “which means the trial will pause once again while the appellate process plays out,” per CNN.
Last week, Smith’s team filed a new superseding indictment against Trump, with the same charges modified to adhere to the Supreme Court ruling.
The new indictment said, “Donald Trump did knowingly combine, conspire, confederate, and agree with co-conspirators, known and unknown to the Grand Jury, to defraud the United States by using dishonesty, fraud, and deceit to impair, obstruct, and defeat the lawful federal government function by which the results of the presidential election are collected, counted, and certified by the federal government.” The indictment names former Vice President Mike Pence as one of the “co-conspirators” who was apparently pressured by Trump to reject electoral votes.
Chutkan did not immediately decide how she would handle the matter or provide a timeline for its completion. At the conclusion of the hearing, she said she would release a written order outlining her approach as soon as possible.