©  AP

Special Counsel Jack Smith has asked the Supreme Court to weigh in on former President Trump‘s argument that he has presidential immunity from the federal indictment accusing him of criminal conspiracies to subvert the 2020 election results.

“This case presents a fundamental question at the heart of our democracy,” Smith wrote in his filing, “whether a former President is absolutely immune from federal prosecution for crimes committed while in office or is constitutionally protected from federal prosecution when he has been impeached but not convicted before the criminal proceedings begin.”

Trump has also argued the case against him violates his protection against double jeopardy because the Senate acquitted him in the impeachment trial after the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack.

Smith is asking the justices to decide the matter before the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals rules on Trump’s appeal of a lower court’s rejection of his immunity argument. The trial is set to begin March 4.

The federal case into Trump’s actions around the 2020 election is one of four criminal cases involving the former president and the first to go to trial, according to current court schedules. Read more here.

Welcome to Evening Report! I’m Amee LaTour, catching you up from the afternoon and what’s coming tomorrow. Not on the list? Subscribe here.

• A “Saturday Night Live” skit from over the weekend that focused on the House hearing on antisemitism at universities is drawing pushback.
  
  
• The Hill’s Rebecca Beitsch and Emily Brooks break down the House GOP’s key claims in its impeachment inquiry into President Biden.
  
  

• Two House committees are pushing for different bills reauthorizing the government’s warrantless surveillance powers amid heated debate.

©  AP/J. Scott Applewhite

Congress breaks for the holidays toward the end of the week. Here are the big agenda items on each chamber’s list as they close out 2023:

• Zelensky meetings: Senators are set to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) will also meet with Zelensky. The meetings come as lawmakers debate whether to give Ukraine more aid, what border policies to attach to such funding, and more.
  
  
• NDAA: The Senate is expected to vote on the National Defense Authorization Act this week, with the hope of sending it to the House before the holiday break.
  
  
• Impeachment inquiry: The House is expected to vote on whether to formalize the impeachment inquiry into President Biden that kicked off months ago. Committee markup happens Tuesday.

A woman trying to receive an emergency abortion for a high-risk pregnancy in Texas has left the state after the Texas Supreme Court blocked an order from a state district court granting her permission to get one.

From The Hill’s Nathaniel Weixel: “Following Thursday’s ruling from District Court Judge Maya Guerra Gamble, [Texas Attorney General Ken] Paxton issued a direct threat to hospitals and physicians, saying the court’s order would not protect them from prosecution if they performed an abortion on Cox.” Read more here.

The latest draft text from the COP28 international climate summit calls for reducing the use and production of fossil fuels, removing an earlier draft’s language around phasing out fossil fuels.

The draft also calls for tripling global renewable energy capacity by 2030 and rapidly phasing down unabated coal. 

Today’s number:

115.2 million

Number of people AAA estimates will travel at least 50 miles in the 10-day holiday period, the highest since 2019 (when around 119.3 million did so).

© Getty

The Supreme Court had a busy start to the week. Learn more about today’s rulings:

• Supreme Court refuses RFK Jr. request to intervene in social media case; Alito dissents
• Supreme Court wipes rulings on federal employee, military vaccine mandates
• Supreme Court leaves intact Washington state conversion therapy ban
• Supreme Court turns away challenge to abortion clinic buffer zones

Wisconsin Secretary of State Sarah Godlewski (D) urged state Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu (R) to remove Robert Spindell Jr. (R) from the Wisconsin Elections Commission. Spindell was one of 10 fake electors who settled a lawsuit last week, conceding their actions were part of an effort to overturn the state’s 2020 election results.

“When is doxxing ethical or unethical?”

“Beyond forgiveness: Tackle the root causes of debt in higher education and health care”

🗳 35 days until Iowa’s Republican caucuses, the first presidential nominating contest of 2024.

🎅🏼 Rep. Tim Burchett‘s (R-Tenn.) “second annual Very Carhartt Christmas” party Tuesday will be extended to last 16 minutes this year and will feature Florida Democratic Rep. Jared Moskowitz as Santa Claus.

Tuesday:

• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky meets with senators, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and President Biden.
• The House Rules Committee marks up the Biden impeachment inquiry resolution at 10 a.m. 
• The Senate Foreign Relations Committee receives a closed briefing on “Iran and its proxy threat to U.S. policy and personnel post-October 7” at 2:30 p.m. 
• CNN hosts a town hall with Ron DeSantis at 9 p.m.

Wednesday:

• The Federal Reserve announces its decision on interest rates at 2 p.m.
• CNN hosts a town hall with Vivek Ramaswamy at 9 p.m.

Thursday: The House breaks for the holidays.

Friday: The Senate breaks for the holidays.

All times Eastern.

There a story you think should be getting more attention? Something people should be talking about? Drop me a line: ALaTour@digital-stage.thehill.com