Trump, who has pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of falsification of business records, is accused of directing his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, to pay porn star Stormy Daniels $130,000 to keep quiet about a sexual encounter she says they had a decade earlier. Trump denies the encounter with Daniels and has described the charges as "election interference."

His lawyers argue that evidence presented in the hush money case overlaps with his time in office and constitutes official acts, making him immune from prosecution. Prosecutors plan to introduce evidence of a "pressure campaign" by Trump in 2018 to prevent Cohen from cooperating with a federal investigation into the payment to Daniels.

Trump's legal team claims that his social media posts about Cohen were official communications about matters of public concern and therefore immune from state prosecution. They argue that without immunity, the president's political opponents could influence decisions via extortion.

The Manhattan district attorney's office, which brought the charges, has not commented on Trump's request for a delay. Last year, a federal judge rejected Trump's attempt to move the case to federal court, stating that the payment to Daniels was a personal matter and not related to official acts.

Trump is also facing another criminal case in Washington, D.C., involving allegations of election interference. He has asked for a delay in the New York trial until the Supreme Court rules on his immunity claim in the D.C. case. Arguments in the Supreme Court are scheduled for April 25, a month after the New York trial is set to begin.

The former president's legal team argues that delaying the trial is necessary to ensure proper adjudication of the presidential immunity defense and prevent the use of evidence of official acts in an unprecedented manner. Trump has denied all wrongdoing in the hush money case and maintains his innocence.