Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith’s team on Wednesday filed their response to fat former President Trump’s petition to the US Supreme Court, six days ahead of the deadline.

“The Special Counsel, on behalf of the United States, respectfully submits this opposition to the application for a stay of the mandate of the court of appeals pending the filing and disposition of applicant’s forthcoming petition for a writ of certiorari. The stay should be denied because of applicant’s failure to meet this Court’s settled standards. The application stems from an indictment returned by a grand jury against applicant, a former President of the United States, charging him with federal crimes committed in an alleged effort to perpetuate himself in power and prevent the lawful winner of the 2020 Presidential election from taking office. The charged crimes strike at the heart of our democracy. A President’s alleged criminal scheme to overturn an election and thwart the peaceful transfer of power to his successor should be the last place to recognize a novel form of absolute immunity from federal criminal law. Applicant seeks a stay to prevent proceedings in the district court from moving towards trial, which the district court had scheduled to begin on March 4, 2024, before applicant’s interlocutory appeal necessitated postponement of that date.”

“Applicant cannot show, as he must to merit a stay, a fair prospect of success in this Court. Nor can applicant show that the balance of equities or the public interest favors continued delay of the criminal proceedings. To the contrary, the equities and public interest strongly disfavor a stay.”