• A federal judge has once again rejected Trump's attempt to move his hush money case to federal court.
• Trump's arguments centered around presidential immunity were deemed insufficient by the judge.
• Hellerstein's ruling marks the third rejection of Trump's legal strategy regarding the case.

On August 28, a federal judge denied Donald Trump's latest attempt to transfer his already-decided hush money case from New York state court to federal court. U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein ruled that Trump's reasoning was "neither new nor legally sufficient," reiterating that the case revolves around his personal conduct rather than presidential duties. This ruling signifies a setback for Trump as he seeks to overturn his felony conviction stemming from a $130,000 payment made to adult film star Stormy Daniels, which was intended to silence allegations of an extramarital affair during his 2016 campaign, according to Reuters and CBS News.

Judge Hellerstein has previously ruled against Trump's legal arguments on two occasions. He firmly stated that paying hush money or engaging in a cover-up does not fall under the protections of presidential immunity. Trump's lawyers argued that the Supreme Court's ruling in Trump v. United States, which granted broad immunity concerning official acts, should apply here, but the judge dismissed these arguments, emphasizing that the actions were personal in nature, according to Al Jazeera and The Hill.

The decision follows a directive from a three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which had ordered Hellerstein to reconsider Trump's request for removal based on the Supreme Court's July 2024 decision that affected how presidential immunity applies in criminal cases. However, Hellerstein determined that Donald Trump's conduct, particularly regarding the hush money payments, does not pertain to “official acts” of the presidency, according to Los Angeles Times and India Times.

Trump's legal team has indicated plans to appeal Hellerstein's ruling, which they described as "baseless and lawless." His attorneys have vowed to continue fighting the conviction that stemmed from the hush money payments, maintaining that the effort is part of what they term the “weaponization” of the legal system against the former president. The conviction has left Trump as the first former and current U.S. president to face criminal conviction, according to Reuters, CBS News, and The Hill.