Indictment of Donald Trump: The Latest

 

President Joe Biden said Friday morning that he had “no comment at all” on the indictment of former President Donald Trump, staying mum on the news while on his way to Mississippi to visit with tornado victims.

Biden’s reaction – or lack thereof – is one of myriad responses to the indictment as the development continues to reverberate around the political world.

Reports emerged Thursday evening that Trump was indicted by a Manhattan grand jury for his role in a hush money scheme involving a porn star, shocking political observers nationwide. Though Trump had hinted earlier this month at an impending arrest, recent leaks from people claiming to have knowledge of the grand jury investigation suggested that an indictment could be a month away. As such, Thursday evening’s news caught many off guard.

Trump’s lawyer confirmed as much Friday morning.

Trump “initially was shocked. After he got over that, he put a notch on his belt and, you know, he decided we have to fight now,” Joe Tacopina, Trump’s attorney, said during an interview with NBC News.

Little is known about the charges, and the indictment remains under seal. Regardless, Tocopina said that Trump would not take a plea deal because, “There’s no crime.” Tocopina also confirmed that Trump’s team plans to file legal challenges to the indictment before it even makes it to trial.

The office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has been investigating Trump for a $130,000 hush money payment made to porn star Stormy Daniels during Trump’s presidential campaign in 2016. That payment was initially made by Trump’s former fixer, Michael Cohen, in a bid to keep her quiet about an affair she says she had with Trump. Cohen was reimbursed by Trump, and later pleaded guilty for campaign finance violations related to the payment. He was sentenced to prison. Cohen testified to the grand jury and is considered one of the prosecution’s star witnesses.

Trump is expected to surrender to authorities in Manhattan and appear before a judge on Tuesday, though those plans reportedly remain fluid. Trump will be fingerprinted and photographed, as is typical of any criminal defendant. He will be arraigned by a judge and is expected to plead not guilty.

Reaction has been predictably divided across the political sphere.

Democrats have been muted on the news, expressing few opinions on the indictment itself but insisting that the judicial process should be allowed to play out without interference, political or otherwise.

Republicans, meanwhile, have largely fallen into lockstep with Trump, decrying the indictment as a political witch hunt and an affront to democracy. Even those weighing running against Trump for the 2024 nomination have denounced the indictment, including former Vice President Mike Pence and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Pence described the charges as a “disgrace” Thursday evening in an interview on CNN, while DeSantis labeled the indictment as a “weaponization of the legal system to advance a political agenda.”

Many Republicans are, however, also urging peace and calm – a notable entreaty after Trump earlier this month forecasted “death and destruction” in the event of his arrest and called on supporters to “PROTEST, TAKE OUR NATION BACK.”

Law enforcement organizations are bracing for potential disruptions. Barricades have gone up around the courthouse in lower Manhattan, and all New York uniformed police officers were instructed to be on duty Friday.

The scene remained calm Thursday night and Friday, but that could change when Trump appears at the courthouse Tuesday.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Georgia Republican and a MAGA firebrand, said on Twitter that she would be traveling to New York on Tuesday.

“We MUST protest the unconstitutional WITCH HUNT!" she said.

Trump himself released a long and defiant statement Thursday evening and has since made several posts and reposts on social media about the indictment but has so far refrained from calling for physical demonstrations.

Trump also quickly started fundraising off the news – a call to action echoed by many of his Republican allies, including Sen. Lindsay Graham, South Carolina Republican, who made an emotional plea on Fox News asking people to donate to Trump.

“I am not afraid of what’s to come. This is the battle I willingly signed up for when I decided to take on the entire Washington Machine as a political outsider 8 years ago, and be YOUR voice,” a Friday fundraising email from Trump’s campaign read.


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