Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell stood by his past comments that presidents should not have absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for their actions while in office.
After the Supreme Court heard arguments on the issue Thursday, NBC News’ Kristen Welker pressed McConnell about 2021 remarks he made following Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial. While McConnell voted with the majority to acquit Trump on a charge of inciting the deadly January 6 attack on the Capitol, he blamed Trump for provoking the riot and said that former presidents were “not immune from being held accountable” by civil litigation or criminal prosecution.
“That was my view, but I don’t make that decision,” McConnell said Thursday, pointing to the case currently pending before the court, which Trump brought as he seeks to avoid federal prosecution over his efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
“The president clearly needs some kind of immunity or he’d be in court all the time. So we will see how the Supreme Court deals with it,” he said.
Following nearly three hours of oral arguments, the Supreme Court on Thursday appeared ready to reject Trump’s claims of sweeping immunity and the broad protections he has sought to shut down the federal election subversion case. The former president maintains that the conduct Smith charged him over was part of his official duties as president and he is shielded from criminal liability.
Trump and McConnell have a strained relationship. CNN reported in January that the two hadn’t spoken in more than three years. McConnell, who will step down as the Senate’s Republican leader in November, has also found himself at odds with Trump and other members of his party over Ukraine aid and his occasional willingness to negotiate with Democrats.
Still, McConnell endorsed Trump in March, shortly after the former president dominated races across the country on Super Tuesday. McConnell said that Trump had earned the “requisite support of Republican voters” to be the GOP nominee.
“It should come as no surprise that as nominee, he will have my support,” McConnell said in a statement.
CNN’s Manu Raju, John Fritze, Tierney Sneed and Marshall Cohen contributed to this report.
