(BBC News) Ex-president Donald Trump has asked a federal court to dismiss the election interference case against him, arguing his role entitled him to “absolute immunity”.
Trump’s lawyers say his attempts to cast doubt on the 2020 election fell within his duties as president and are not subject to criminal prosecution.
The claims were “at the heart of his official responsibilities,” they argue.
Separately, Trump has asked for a delay in his classified documents case.
Trump’s attorneys have asked for that trial, in which he is accused of improperly handling sensitive files, to be held after the 2024 presidential election.
It is part of a flurry of legal filings in recent days related to a number of Trump’s ongoing cases.
In a new filing in the election interference case on Thursday, his lawyers argue that Trump’s public statements about the 2020 contest were attempts at “ensuring the integrity of federal elections.”
“The acts alleged in the indictment lie firmly within the ‘outer perimeter’ of the president’s official responsibility,” the lawyers argue.
