Jan. 6 hearing updates: Judge says immunity is ‘linchpin,’ special counsel says they can move ‘quickly’

Prosecutor Tom Windom made some final points supporting the prosecution’s views. Among them, he noted that in the New York hush money case against Trump, Trump’s legal team filed a 52-page motion to vacate the case only nine days after the SCOTUS ruling related to immunity.

“The defense can move comprehensively, quickly and well, and so can we,” and the judge should consider that in setting the schedule in this case, Windom said.

Defense attorney John Lauro then said he wanted to speak briefly. Chutkan said it had to be brief, saying, “I don’t need any more rhetoric on how serious and grave this is.”

“It’s not rhetoric, it’s called legal argument,” Lauro shot back.

Lauro again insisted that special counsel Jack Smith’s appointment was unlawful. “We have an illegitimate prosecutor. We have an illegitimate indictment,” he said.