Donald Trump is trying to get out of a lawsuit filed by a woman who says he sexually harassed her using the same excuse he’s used to wiggle away from ethics and conflict of interest concerns: I’m the president, so I’m immune.
But wait, you’re saying. Paula Jones got to sue Bill Clinton—the U.S. Supreme Court even said she had the right to do that—so why wouldn’t Summer Zervos get to sue Trump for defamation? The argument is that Clinton v. Jones said a president could be sued in federal court, but Zervos’ lawsuit is in state court:
In a filing submitted on Monday, Trump's lawyer, Marc Kasowitz, argued that "the United States Constitution, including the Supremacy Clause contained therein, immunizes the President from being sued in state court while in office." He noted that in Clinton v. Jones, which established that Presidents are not immune from federal lawsuits over actions they took before taking office, the U.S. Supreme Court did not decide whether the President could be sued in state court. [...]
Kasowitz asked the state Supreme Court to decide whether Trump has immunity from the lawsuit before otherwise proceeding with the case. He wrote that "allowing litigation on the merits to proceed prior to resolution of this crucial and threshold constitutional issue would unduly burden the President and would defeat the purpose of Presidential immunity," and stated that Clinton v. Jones established that courts should address the issue of immunity before taking other actions in such a case.
Trump can and will drag this one out for months if not years, and it will provide a major cautionary tale for any other women who he’s sexually harassed or assaulted who haven’t yet come forward.