The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday temporarily blocked a Georgia grand jury from subpoenaing Sen. Lindsey Graham as part of its investigation into alleged attempts to overthrow the 2020 election results.
The Court’s decision came after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit on Thursday rejected Graham’s request to block the subpoena, which was upheld by a federal district judge last month.
Justice Clarence Thomas, who oversees the Eleventh Circuit, stayed the district court’s order “pending further order of the undersigned or of the Court.”
BREAKING: Justice Thomas issues interim order shielding Lindsey Graham from grand jury questioning while Scotus considers whether to block for longer term. pic.twitter.com/xz4U861bhO
— Greg Stohr (@GregStohr) October 24, 2022
Over the weekend, Thomas asked Georgia prosecutors to respond to Graham’s request for a stay of the subpoena by Thursday.
Georgia prosecutors are investigating the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election. They hope to question Graham about his alleged communications with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger in the months leading up to the election’s certification.
However, Graham’s attorneys argued the senator is protected by the Constitution’s Speech or Debate Clause, which protects members of Congress from legal risk for comments made during legislative activity.
“Without a stay, Senator Lindsey Graham will soon be questioned by a local Georgia prosecutor and her ad hoc investigative body about his protected ‘Speech or Debate’ related to the 2020 election,” Graham’s attorneys argued. “This will occur despite the Constitution’s command that Senators ‘shall not be questioned’ about ‘any Speech or Debate.’”
Due to Justice Thomas’s temporary order, this matter will now be referred to the other eight justices for a vote from the full court.
The case is Graham v. Fulton County Special Purpose Grand Jury, No. 22A337, in the Supreme Court of the United States.
Jordan Dixon-Hamilton is a reporter for Breitbart News. Write to him at jdixonhamilton@breitbart.com or follow him on Twitter.
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