Donald Trump warned that the American republic will descend into chaos and "bedlam" if the courts do not stop the Biden regime's political prosecutions.
"They feel this is the way they're going to try and win," he said. "And that's not the way it goes. It will be bedlam in the country."
Trump was speaking at a courthouse in Washington, D.C. after a hearing on his claims of presidential immunity.
A three-judge panel of the D.C. appeals court sounded skeptical of Trump's claims Tuesday. Two of the three judges are Biden appointees.
After the hearing, Trump warned of dire consequences if the courts reject his argument.
He cited different acts for which Biden could be prosecuted, including the taking of an alleged bribe from Ukraine, his refusal to secure the southern border, and the disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan.
"It's a very bad precedent, as we said, it's the opening of a Pandora's box," Trump said.
The Biden campaign and leftist media highlighted Trump's comments, framing them as an invitation to political violence.
In fact, Trump was simply speculating - reasonably so - about the likely effect of settling political disputes through lawfare rather than voting.
Even some Democrats have pushed back on efforts to have Trump removed from the ballot, citing the danger of destabilizing the political system.
Ironically, Biden has made his 2024 campaign all about "saving democracy." Trump has flipped that argument on its head by pointing to his criminal trials as a form of election interference.
"When they talk about threat to democracy, that's your real threat to democracy," Trump said Tuesday.
Trump says he was acting in his official capacity to "take care" that the laws are faithfully executed when he challenged the 2020 election, which he maintains was fraudulent.
In court, Trump's lawyer John Sauer warned that failing to recognize presidential immunity would open the door to tit-for-tat prosecutions.
"The notion that criminal immunity for a president doesn't exist is a shocking holding," Sauer said.
"It would authorize, for example, the indictment of President Biden in the Western District of Texas after he leaves office for mismanaging the border."
In the likely scenario that the panel rejects Trump's claim, the case could head to the Supreme Court next.
