In a terse but devastating order, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected Trump’s emergency bid to halt the criminal case probing his efforts to cling to power after losing the 2020 election. The three-judge panel moved with unusual speed, issuing a unanimous per curiam ruling before most of Washington woke up. No oral arguments, no extended briefing, no sign of hesitation. The opinion’s language was as significant as the outcome: the court described Trump’s alleged actions as “unprecedented in our nation’s history,” a phrase that framed his conduct not as routine political hardball, but as a fundamental challenge to constitutional order.
For prosecutors, the decision clears a critical obstacle to bringing the case to trial. For Trump, it is a stark reminder that his status as a former president offers no automatic shield. And for the country, it signals that the judiciary is willing, at least for now, to confront the legacy of January 6 head-on.
