Supreme Court Justice Sonya Sotomayor questioned former President Donald Trump’s lawyer D. John Sauer Thursday over what constitutes an “official act” by the president, as the nation’s highest court decides whether Trump should receive immunity from prosecution for his role in trying to overturn the 2020 election.

Sotomayor asked Sauer if a president ordering his political rival’s assassination because he believed his opponent was corrupt would constitute an official act. Sauer said it could.

“It could? And why? Because he’s doing it for personal reasons,” Sotomayor countered.

“And isn't that the nature of the allegations here? That he's not doing these acts in furtherance of an official responsibility. He's doing it for personal gain,” she added.

Subscribe:
Newsletters: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/subscribe
PBS NewsHour podcasts: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/podcasts

Stream your PBS favorites with the PBS app: https://to.pbs.org/2Jb8twG
Find more from PBS NewsHour at https://www.pbs.org/newshour
Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://bit.ly/2HfsCD6

Follow us:
TikTok:   / pbsnews  
Twitter:   / newshour  
Instagram:   / newshour  
Facebook: http://www.pbs.org/newshour