More than a dozen former Defense Department officials, generals, and admirals filed a brief with the Supreme Court arguing against former President Donald Trump's presidential immunity arguments.
It comes as the U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear arguments on the former president's assertions that he should enjoy immunity from prosecution for activity that he carried out while he was president.
The former secretary of Defense under President Trump, Mark Esper, was critical of their submission to the Supreme Court, arguing during a CNN interview that he "Would prefer to see retired admirals and generals not get involved."
President Trump's lawyers have contended that the president's office cannot function without immunity from the threat of prosecution because it could "Incapacitate every future president with de facto blackmail and extortion while in office and condemn him to years of post-office trauma at the hands of political opponents," arguing that such a phenomenon is playing out right now after the former president was indicted multiple times last year.
The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals had earlier issued a ruling against President Trump's arguments that he should be declared immune from prosecution.
Special counsel Jack Smith has pushed for the U.S. high court to reject the former president's claims of immunity, telling the justices that President Trump's actions that led to the charges, if he is convicted, would represent "An unprecedented assault on the structure of our government."
Backing President Trump, several GOP-led states filed a petition to the Supreme Court arguing that the justices should reverse the appeals court's decision and grant the former president immunity in the cases.
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