Newswire: NFL turns to Africa to build a market beyond the U. S.

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Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, linebacker for the Cleveland Browns, in his home atire

Feb. 12, 2024 (GIN) – By the time you read this, the Super Bowl will be over and done. As will the Africa Cup of Nations 2023. What you may not have heard is how the league swapped the greenery of American football fields for an Accra marketplace in a mission to grow its brand and engage new fans across the continent.

In the 15-second teaser seen over the weekend, the NFL spotlights growing global initiatives in a Super Bowl commercial. Three of the league’s top stars are seen in downtown Accra, scampering through Ghana’s Makola Market, passing street vendors, flipping and leaping, before doing the Azonto dance.

In the ad campaign, titled “Born to Play,” Giants running back Saquon Barkley, Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson and Saints defensive end Cam Jordan are centerpieces in the spot.

The NFL has been growing its presence in Africa, starting in Ghana, with the Cleveland Browns’ Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah. A linebacker, his use of Ghanaian and other African cultures in his pre-game wardrobe makes his fashion sense stand out – not often seen in American pro sports.

In the league today, there are currently over 125 players of African descent (born in Africa or children born to African immigrants), per the NFL.

Last year, the National Football League’s “NFL Africa” program expanded to Kenya as the League continues to invest in growing the game at all levels across the continent.

The Indianapolis Colts currently have six Africans on their 53-man roster: defensive tackle Adetomiwa Adebawore, tight end Mo Alie-Cox, linebacker Segun Olubi and defensive ends Samson Ebukam (Nigerian), Dayo fOdeyingbo and Kwity Paye (Liberian). Defensive tackle McTelvin Agim, who is of Nigerian descent, is on their practice squad.

That’s the most of any team in the league, creating an environment where players are able to share different experiences that many of their other teammates can’t relate to.

While the players enjoy their shared experience, there is also a sense of pride that comes with representing Africa.

“You’re definitely an ambassador in everything you do,” Olubi said. “I’m an ambassador with my last name. Everybody knows where my last name comes from. My first name, my family, got to make them proud and make the people around them proud.”

In January 2024, the League announced its International Player Pathway (IPP) program Class of 2024, which features 11 athletes from around the world.

Osi Umenyiora, who spent part of his youth living in both London and his native Nigeria, played 12 seasons in the NFL, winning two Super Bowls with the New York Giants. After retiring, Umenyiora began working for the league, eventually rising to lead the NFL Africa initiative, where he foresaw a lot of potential on the continent.

“This is just the beginning for these players, and we eagerly anticipate sharing their stories and the game of football with the world.”

Since its inception, 37 international players have signed with NFL teams. “Without a shadow of a doubt, that is the home of the most incredible athletes in the world,” Umenyiora said of Africa.

Newswire : Thrilling history of Black excellence in our National Parks

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By Audrey Peterman
Buffalo herd grazing in Yellowstone National Park
As recipient of the National Park Conservation Association’s Centennial Leadership Award 2022 “for outstanding contribution toward ensuring our national parks are ready for their second century of service,” I embrace Black History Month as an opportunity to take you on a tour to some of the glorious places in the National Park System where our forebears helped turn the tide of history. I take it as a point of pride that I have literally walked in the majority of these places which is why my thirst to share them may never be quenched.

I could take you geographically from the southernmost point of the continental United States at the Dry Tortugas National Park, where enslaved Black men helped build massive Fort Jefferson as part of America’s coastal defense system in the 1830s.

We could go all the way north to the highest peak on the North American continent where George Crenshaw left his footprints on Mount Denali in Denali National Park July 9, 1964. Because in every facet of American life -from exploration; conquest; defense; economy; resistance; conservation and the pursuit of human rights – I can show you a unit of the National Park System where the event took place, where African Americans made the difference, and the park is the means of protecting the story.
The legacy is so extensive I might have to share it in multiple pieces, and the best thing of all is that the contributions of every race and ethnic group is similarly protected in units of the Park System at the places where it happened. Literally, the National Park System “preserves unimpaired the natural and cultural resources and values” of our country “for the enjoyment, education and inspiration of this and future generations.”
Let’s begin at Fort Monroe National Monument in Virginia, marking the site where the first Africans were traded onto American soil in 1619. The plantation economy subsequently built upon the labor of millions of enslaved Africans, and its impact on their lives can be experienced at the Charles Pinkney National Historic Site in South Carolina  (he being a signer of the US Constitution) and the Kingsley Plantation outside Jacksonville, (where the plantation mistress, Anna Madgigine Jai was a Senegalese princess  whom the Florida planter Zephaniah Kingsley married in 1806 when she was 13 years old) Their offspring include Johnetta Betsch Cole, legendary educator and former president of Spelman College.

The first shot to ring out in the Revolutionary War took the life of Crispus Attucks, and the place where he fell still is identified as the site of the Boston Massacre in Boston National Historical Park. Valley Forge National Historical Park in Philadelphia contains the encampment site of General George Washington’s Continental Army in the dire winter of 1777-78 when, lacking a supply chain, soldiers were forced to forage for food, heat and clothing. The anguish suffered by Black and brown men and women in the encampment was visible from the bloody footprints left on the snow. Yet the ragged band persevered and emerged “a cohesive and disciplined fighting force” that went on to secure the new nation.

At nearby Independence National Historical Park let’s tune in to the words of the Declaration of Independence ringing out July 4, 1776:  “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal…” The dramatically flawed and cracked Liberty Bell, that unbowed symbol of the drive for freedom stands sentinel outside, reminding us that the job is not yet finished.

I hope your appetite is sufficiently whetted. Next time we’ll start at Fort Sumpter and Fort Moultrie National Park in Charleston Harbor where the first shot of the Civil War rang out signifying the rejection of slavery, and conclude at Appomattox Court House National Historical Park in Virginia where confederate general Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union General Ulysses S. Grant. In a meeting reportedly so cordial it was dubbed “A gentleman’s agreement,” Lee accepted the gift of rations for his starving troops and told them to return home and resume their lives as Americans.
Black history is inextricably interwoven with American history, because we are an indispensable part of everything that happened here. Our Herculean efforts in the face of rabid racism helped make America the beacon she remains today.
(Audrey Peterman is an environmentalist and diversity advocate since 1995. Book her to speak at your next event, Audrey@AudreyPeterman.com.)

Newswire: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s hospitalization reignites controversy over transparency amid health concerns

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Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III official portrait session, July 6, 2023. (DoD photo by Chad J. McNeeley)

Lloyd Austin, Defense Secretary

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin found himself back in the spotlight as he was urgently admitted to an emergency hospital on Sunday afternoon for symptoms related to a bladder issue, just weeks after his previous hospitalization. The 70-year-old cabinet official’s decision to withhold information from the White House about his earlier health episode has triggered a renewed wave of criticism and scrutiny.
The latest incident, detailed in a report by USA Today, saw Secretary Austin move to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center for treatment—the announcement, made by Pentagon press secretary Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder disclosed that Austin is undergoing treatment for symptoms indicating a severe bladder issue, raising concerns about the gravity of his health condition.
This recurrence comes on the heels of Austin’s earlier hospitalization, a matter that was not promptly disclosed to the White House, Congress, and other Pentagon officials. The deliberate delay in communication has intensified scrutiny and fueled outrage among right-leaning media pundits and lawmakers.
During his prior hospitalization, Austin delegated his duties to his deputy, but the decision to withhold pertinent information from key stakeholders has ignited widespread criticism. Shortly before 5 o’clock, Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder announced that Kathleen Hicks had taken over as deputy secretary of defense.
The Pentagon’s statement emphasized the urgency of Austin’s hospitalization for symptoms related to a bladder issue. The White House, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Congress have all been informed about the unfolding situation.
The controversy surrounding the delayed disclosure raises fundamental questions about transparency within the Defense Department and the communication protocols governing the health status of high-ranking officials.

Learning Black History every day of every month: Ancestral History guides our living

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Pictured: Judge William Branch, Wadine Williams, Sheriff Thomas Gilmore,  Clarence Davis, Blue Musician, Glory 2 Glory Gospel group, Odessa Rice,  Quilter, Basket Weaver and  Martha Kimbrough, Quilter

There is a well known adage that has the message – If you don’t know your history you are doomed to repeat it. Greene County is noted for its political accomplishments mainly from 1965 through 1970, and to some extent beyond. In 1965, Black students from then Carver High School, joined later by Black students from Greene County Training School and Eatman Jr. High School, boycotted their places of learning to call attention to oppression and discrimination in Greene County and initiate change. The young people took a stand, assisted by the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), and thus began the Civil Rights Movement in Greene County.
The outcomes are manifested in Black citizens, as 80% of the county’s population, registering to vote, organizing a political party, The National Democratic Party of Alabama (NDPA), running as candidates and winning local elections. Of course, none of this was easily gained. The young marchers were harassed, attacked, arrested and jailed. When the adults joined the local movement, many were also harmed and terrorized in various ways. Some were evicted off white-folk’s property; some lost very needed jobs. Those foot soldiers, young and older, knew fear and danger, but they embraced the cause for rights due them and justice denied and they had a victory.
There is a litany of the First Black Elected Officials in Greene County, but if you ask any scholar in Greene County schools to name one or two of the first Black elected officials, you are likely to be disappointed in the non-response. Approximately eight years ago, the Greene County Board of Education approved a policy that mandated the infusion of Black History into the curriculum. The intent is not to offer one course in Black History, but to incorporate the role and contributions or connections of Black people throughout each course. Sadly, there is no evidence that this policy is being implemented.
Many of our young people today don’t carry the significance of what the Civil Rights Movement in Greene County prepared them for. Nor do they carry the significance of our ancestral history from the African Continent.
Because of our ancestral history, in 1966, Rev. Peter J. Kirksey became the first Black school board member in Greene County and Rev. W. D. Lewis was elected to the Greene County Democratic Executive Committee.
Because of our ancestral history, in the 1969 Special Election ( held because Black candidates on the NDPA ticket were left off the state’s ballot in 1968) the first Black elected County Commissioners were Rev. Vassie Knott, Mr. Harry Means, Mr. Franchie Burton and Mr. Levi Morrow, Sr. Mr. James Posey, Sr. and Mr. Robert Hines were elected to the school board that same year.
Because of our ancestral history, in 1970, Rev. William McKinley Branch was able to become the first Black elected Probate Judge in this nation; Rev. Thomas Gilmore became the first Black elected Sheriff in Greene County; Mrs. Wadine Williams was elected as first Black Circuit Clerk and Mr. Robert Cook became the first Black Tax Collector. Rev. Harold (Abner) Milton was the first Black Coroner.
Because of our ancestral history, Deacon John Head and Mr. Earsrie Chambers also joined the school board in 1970 and the all Black board members hired Mr. Robert Brown as the first Black Superintendent of Schools in Greene County.
Because of our ancestral history, In 1978, Rev. John Kennard became the first Black elected Tax Assessor in Greene County.
Our children should know our people were survivors long before the early political revolution in Greene County and other parts of the Black Belt and the nation.
Because of our ancestral history, we survived enslavement (chattel slavery) in this country and other parts of the world. We survived the Jim Crow era and segregation. As the wise elders proclaimed: We took what we had and made what we needed.
At the annual Black Belt Folk Roots Festival, held in Eutaw, Greene County, AL, produced by the Society of Folk Arts & Culture, we can witness some ways our ancestors made it over. Their artistically designed quilts had a key role in the Underground Railroad through which our people manipulated the passage of our enslaved ancestors to areas of this country where slavery was not mandated. The design of the quilts and how they were positioned for view held messages for the special conductors who led others toward a semblance of freedom land.
The hand crafted baskets, carved wooden utinsels, wooden furnishings were all created from what the Earth of the region provided. At the annual festival elders continue to showcase their stories through baskets created from pine needles, bullrush grass, and cornshucks.
The ole timey blues and gospel music that draws so many to the festival each year recounts how our ancestors exhaled the weight of pain, grief and loss brought through enslavement and disenfranchisement. Those melodic voices then and now carry strong faith, hope and deep spiritual strength from an Almighty power.
The annual festival is one mirror to view history. There are many others, including the annual Bridge Crossing Commemoration and Jubilee held in Selma, AL the first week end in March each year.
We owe our children the exposure of our history. The children must learn from us there are shoulders to stand on, footsteps to follow, guides to build upon. They must learn from us how to live to make history that celebrates who we are and from whom and where we have come. History leads, preparing us to follow. We must know our history to travel our way.

 

325 people died in custody of Alabama Department of Corrections (ADOC) in 2023

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There have now been more than 1,000 deaths in Alabama prisons since a 2019 DOJ investigation found Alabama’s prisons unconstitutional.

By: Patrick Darrington, Alabama Political Reporter
Published on February 2, 2024

At least 325 individuals died while incarcerated in the Alabama Department of Corrections in 2023, marking the highest number of deaths recorded, according to data obtained by Alabama Appleseed.
“In the weeks after we started tracking prison deaths starting January 1 of last year, we quickly realized we’d very likely see another record year of deaths, and we were correct,” Eddie Burkhalter, a researcher with Alabama Appleseed, said.
According to a report by Burkhalter, since 2019, there have now been over 1,000 deaths in Alabama prisons following an investigation by the Department of Justice that found Alabama’s prisons unconstitutional. The DOJ also filed a lawsuit against Alabama in 2020 because of the alleged unconstitutionality of its prisons, and that case is set to begin in November 2024.
The deaths of hundreds of individuals in ADOC facilities underscore a multitude of issues ranging from unchecked violence to the proliferation of drugs, both often a result of the correctional officers supposedly tasked with maintaining the peace.
Multiple times, APR has reported instances of correctional officers being involved in assaults, getting caught possessing drugs, or former officers being sentenced for assaults.
Another issue is the problem of overcrowding and lack of parole for older individuals or those who are in minimum custody, meaning they pose little threat to the public and work in communities in the free world.
ADOC’s statistics often indicate that many individuals die from “natural” causes, which may be true for older individuals. This then raises the question of why many of them are not released.

However, these statistics should also be viewed skeptically because ADOC has a history of misclassifying deaths to mask how many individuals died from violence, as Burkhalter also indicates.
APR has heard from sources that both overcrowding and lack of parole increase the violence within the prisons. The lack of parole, in particular, enables individuals to adopt an attitude of believing they have nothing to lose, resulting in acts of violence because there is no longer a fear of consequence.
“Until the Alabama Department of Corrections takes the steps necessary to rid our prisons of the drugs that drive the violence and death, and hold those who prey on the weaker inside our prisons accountable, we’ll continue to see records like this broken every year. State lawmakers and the public need to press ADOC to act so that we don’t continue to see more MaKayla Mounts, who at the age of 17 feel they must stand in front of a room full of strangers and speak about losing their father at such a young age.”
In December, Mount was one of over a dozen individuals who spoke during a public hearing at a Joint Prison Oversight Committee Meeting. Mount detailed how her father, Christopher Mount, was strangled in prison and expressed what it was like to have to wait 10 years to see her dad.
“You know, when you see your dad for the first time in 10 years and half of his face is gone because he was beaten, it does something to you,” Mount said. “… The [correctional officers] are corrupt, the prisons are corrupt. It’s in the name; it’s a correctional facility. It’s meant for correction. It’s not a death sentence; it’s not supposed to be a death sentence, and yet, it is. So many people are dying for no reason.”
Despite Mount and other families begging for change, the violence has only escalated according to the final death total.
Patrick Darrington is a reporter at the Alabama Political Reporter. You can reach him at pdarrington@alreporter.com.

Newswire: U. S. provides millions in aid for Angola but not so much for famine in Ethopia

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Doctor measures arm of child in Ethopia


Feb. 5, 2024 (GIN) – Winding up his four nation tour of Africa, Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken announced a super generous gift of close to a billion dollars for our new ally, Angola, to fund a solar energy project and upgrade a rail corridor.
 
These major new U.S. investments were seen as sweeteners to help counter China’s influence on the continent.
 
U.S.-Angola relations are at their strongest point in history said Blinken as he and Angolan foreign minister Tete Antonio posed for pictures before their country’s flags.
 
New American investments include more than $900 million for solar energy projects and $250 million to upgrade a rail corridor that carries critical minerals, including cobalt and copper, from central Africa to Angola’s Atlantic port of Lobito.
 
The $900 million Sun Africa solar energy project will get financing from the U.S. Export Import Bank (EXIM) and was approved in October. With the money, Sun Africa is expected to construct two utility-scale solar photovoltaic parks that will provide more than 500 MW of renewable power.  
 
U.S. funding will also cover $363 million financing of Acrow Bridge’s 186 prefabricated bridges. This promises to support critical infrastructure and thousands of Angolan and American jobs.
 
EXIM declared the Sun Africa program its “Deal of the Year” for 2023.
 
The transportation project is expected to further President Biden’s goal of diversifying American supply chains – in part to reduce U.S. dependence on Chinese control of the vital ingredients for a modern economy. It stretches from the Democratic Republic of Congo to the Atlantic Ocean.
 
Not long ago, Angola concluded a civil war in which as many as one million people died. During that war, the Soviet Union provided military training and equipment to the Marxist MPLA (Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola) which ousted the U.S. supported rebels  with help from the Soviets and Cuba.
 
While Angola reaps monetary and other benefits, as many as 20.4 million people across Ethiopia require food support, according to the World Food Program. It is one of four countries in East Africa where Oxfam is responding to extreme hunger.
According to the British Red Cross, soaring food prices, conflict and climate change are plunging parts of Africa into a severe and enduring food crisis, with millions of people in Africa facing extreme hunger.
Nearly 400 people have died of starvation in Ethiopia’s Tigray and Amhara regions in recent months, according to the national ombudsman. It’s a rare admission of hunger-related deaths by a federal body – the government normally dismisses famine warnings as “politicking”.
 

Newswire : Dexter Scott King, champion of civil rights and son of MLK Jr., succumbs to prostate cancer at 62

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By Stacy M. Brown
NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent

Dexter Scott King, the youngest son of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., has died at 62. The King Center, along with statements from the family, confirmed Dexter’s death on Monday, January 22, just one week after the nation observed his father’s holiday. King’s family said he died after a valiant battle against prostate cancer.
Family members claimed that King, a tenacious civil rights activist in his own right, passed away peacefully in his sleep at his Malibu home while spending time with his loved ones. Leah Weber King, Dexter’s wife since 2013, shared the news through a statement from the King Center. “He transitioned peacefully in his sleep at home with me in Malibu,” she said. “He gave it everything and battled this terrible disease until the end. As with all the challenges in his life, he faced this hurdle with bravery and might.”
Martin Luther King III, Dexter’s older brother, also expressed deep sorrow, urging everyone to keep the entire King family, especially Dexter’s wife, Leah Weber, in their thoughts and prayers.
Reverend Al Sharpton, a prominent figure in the civil rights movement, later shared his condolences. “I am heartbroken to hear that Dexter King left us this morning, but I was comforted by the knowledge that he is reunited with his parents and sister,” Sharpton stated.
Dexter’s mother, Coretta Scott King, died in 2006, and his sister, Yolanda Denise King, died in 2007. Dexter, born on January 30, 1961, carried his father’s legacy forward. According to a King Center bio, he attended Morehouse College, majoring in business administration, and in 2005, he took on the roles of chairman, president, and chief executive officer of the King Center.
Dexter’s vision for his father’s legacy was clear: to educate the public about and perpetuate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s message of nonviolence globally. Beyond his activism, Dexter made significant contributions to media and entertainment. He starred in and produced films, records, and television specials focused on the civil rights movement. His animated movie, “Our Friend Martin,” received an Emmy Award nomination, and he authored the intimate memoir “Growing Up King” in 2003.
Recognized as one of Ebony magazine’s “100 Most Influential Black Americans,” Dexter Scott King worked along with his family to keep his parents’ legacy alive.
“On behalf of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), representing the Black Press of America, we pause to mourn and to celebrate the life of Dexter King, who in his own way strived to exemplify the outstanding legacy of his father, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.,” said NNPA President and CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., a civil rights legend who worked under Dr. King in the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. “We express our sympathy to the King family, and we rededicate the Black Press to keep Dr. King’s dream alive, not only for all Americans but for people throughout the world

Newswire: Poor People’s Campaign vows to ‘wake the sleeping giant’ of low-income voters

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By Brett Wilkens, Common Dreams


The Poor People’s Campaign on Monday launched a 42-week nationwide mobilization of poor and low-income Americans to “wake the sleeping giant” of a voting bloc with the potential to determine the outcome of the 2024 elections. 
“It is time for a resurrection and not an insurrection,” Poor People’s Campaign co-chair Rev. Dr. William Barber II said during a press conference in Washington, D.C. “We must engage poor and low-wealth people to change the political landscape.”
“For far too long extremists have blamed poor people and low-wage people for their plight, while moderates too often have ignored poor people, appealing instead to the so-called middle class,” he continued. “Meanwhile, poor and low-income people have become nearly half of this country and we are here today to make one thing clear: Poor and low-wage brothers and sisters have the power to determine and decide the 2024 elections and elections beyond.”
Poor People’s Campaign co-Chair Rev. Dr. Liz Theoharis stressed that “economic justice and saving this democracy are deeply connected.”
“In this rich nation that has the wherewithal to end poverty tomorrow where there’s the political will, we must not overlook the voices and votes of poor and low-income people,” she added. “We are mobilizing and organizing, registering and educating people for a movement that votes… for healthcare and debt cancellation. Votes for living wages and strong anti-poverty programs. Votes for fair taxes and demilitarization of our communities and our world. Votes for immigrant rights and more.”
Democratic pollster Celinda Lake said at the press conference: “In 2024, the election is going to be about mobilization… Democrats have an enthusiasm gap today and the progressive alliance and Democrats have fissures within their constituencies that make getting out the vote even more important.”
“The biggest bloc of potential voters by far is low-income, low-wage voters,” Lake noted. “Where the margin of victory is projected to be less than 3% in 2024, 30-45% of the voters are low-wage voters or low-income families… The turnout among low-wage voters and low-income voters today is… 20-22% below the average turnout. This is a huge bloc of voters, and it is a bloc of voters that votes 58-60%—at minimum—progressive, no matter how conservative the state.”
“You’re talking about a huge number—a game-changing number—of voters,” she added. 
The campaign’s main scheduled events are a Mass Poor People’s & Low-Wage Workers’ Moral March to State House Assemblies on March 2 and a rally and march in Washington, D.C. on June 15.
“I have been struggling to pay my bills since I’ve been working at 16 years old. I work full time, 64 hours a week, seven days a week,” said Beth Schafer of Raise Up for $15 during a video promoting the new campaign. “I am exhausted.”
Crow Roberts, an organizer with the Indiana Poor People’s Campaign, said in the video that “our government finds it necessary to ban abortion to say that they are saving our children, but more children die as a result of poverty in this country.”
Guadalupe de la Cruz of the Florida Poor People’s Campaign asserted that “we should not be cornered and forced to choose between one necessity or another.”
Speaking at the press conference, Alabama activist Linda Burns said that “for three years I worked the assembly line at Amazon in Bessemer, Alabama. The work was grueling. We were expected to work like robots, moving like 1,000 pieces per hour.”
“I got badly injured. My left arm,” she continued. “I had two surgeries. I had to get a third surgery, but I didn’t have no more insurance. Amazon, they cut my insurance off a year after. They let me go last October.”
“Amazon let me go because I was helping organize the union,” said Burns. “We didn’t get the union in Alabama but I’m gonna do everything in my power to stand in solidarity. Organizing the union showed me just how many people were in the same situation I was. Not just in Alabama, but all over the world.”
“Forty-seven percent of the voters are poor or low-wage. Getting that vote in is very important,” she added. “We cannot settle for less, we’ve got to stand up for our rights. We are forward together—not one step back.” 

Newswire : ‘Citizen Trump’: Appeals Court says No Immunity in Jan. 6 case

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By Jessica Corbett, Common Dreams

A three-judge panel from the federal appeals court in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday unanimously ruled against former U.S. President Donald Trump’s claims of immunity in a criminal case stemming from his efforts to overturn his 2020 loss.
“For the purpose of this criminal case, former President Trump has become citizen Trump, with all of the defenses of any other criminal defendant. But any executive immunity that may have protected him while he served as president no longer protects him against this prosecution,” states the 57-page opinion.
The panel included one judge appointed by former GOP President George H.W. Bush and two appointed by Democratic President Joe Biden, who is seeking reelection this year. Trump is the Republican front-runner despite four ongoing criminal cases and arguments he is constitutionally disqualified from holding office again after engaging in insurrection on January 6, 2021.
Welcoming the development, the watchdog Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington declared: “Donald Trump is not above prosecution. The law and the Constitution apply to him just like they apply to every other American. This is a major victory for our democracy and the rule of law.”
The ruling aligns with the panel’s skepticism during arguments last month. When one judge had challenged the limits of immunity by asking Trump’s attorney whether a president could “order SEAL Team 6 to assassinate a political rival,” the lawyer responded that “he would have to be and would speedily be impeached and convicted before the criminal prosecution.”
The panel’s decision comes after Judge Tayna Chutkan of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia—who rejected Trump’s immunity claim in December—last week postponed his election interference trial, which had been scheduled for March. Trump is expected to appeal Tuesday’s decision to the U.S. Supreme Court, whose right-wing supermajority includes three justices he appointed.
The mandate from the appellate court opinion denying Trump immunity “issues in six days on February 12,” noted Los Angeles Times senior legal affairs columnist Harry Litman. “That’s very quick and puts him in a box having to find a stay before then,” from the full D.C. Circuit or the Supreme Court, or Chutkan can proceed with the trial.
The high court in December rejected a request from Special Counsel Jack Smith—who is overseeing Trump’s two federal cases rather than the U.S. Justice Department because of the November election—that the justices skip over the appeals court to swiftly settle the immunity debate.