NEW YORK: Former President Donald Trump’s historic indictment has thrust the 2024 presidential election into uncharted territory, raising the remarkable prospect that the leading contender for the Republican nomination will seek the White House while facing to trial on criminal charges in New York.
In an acknowledgment of the former president’s influence on voters deciding next year’s GOP contest, those who were considering a primary challenge to Trump were quick to criticize the indictment. Without naming Trump, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis called the move “un-American.” Former Vice President Mike Pence, whose life was threatened after Trump incited an insurrection on the US Capitol, told CNN the charges were “outrageous”.
This posture speaks to short-term incentives for Republicans to steer clear of anything that might antagonize Trump’s loyal base. But the indictment raises deep questions for the future of the GOP, especially as Trump faces the possibility of additional charges soon in Atlanta and Washington. While that may galvanize its supporters, the turmoil could threaten the GOP’s standing in heavily swing-state suburbs that have dropped out of the party in three successive elections, eroding its grip on the White House, Congress and key governorships.
Trump has spent four decades circumventing this kind of legal danger and expressed his confidence again on Thursday night, blaming the “thugs and freaks of the radical left.”
“THIS IS AN ATTACK ON OUR COUNTRY THAT HAS NEVER BEEN SEEN BEFORE,” Trump wrote on his social media site.
Trump is “ready to fight,” his attorney, Joe Tacopina, told Fox News.
Trump is expected to surrender to authorities next week on charges related to silent payments made during the 2016 presidential campaign to women who claimed to have had extramarital sex. At this time, it’s unclear how the development will resonate with voters. Polls show Trump remains the undisputed front-runner for the Republican nomination, and his standing hasn’t faltered even amid widespread news coverage of the expected charges.
Trump’s campaign and his allies had long hoped an indictment would serve as a rallying cry for his supporters, angering his “Make America Great Again” base, luring small dollar donations and forcing potential rivals of Trump in the delicate position of having to defend him – or risk their wrath.
Indeed, Trump’s campaign began fundraising on the news almost immediately after it broke, emailing supporters with the subject line in all caps “BREAKING: THE UNKNOWN PRESIDENT TRUMP.”
At Trump’s first rally of the 2024 campaign, held in Texas over the weekend, supporters expressed widespread disgust with the investigation and insisted the case is not wouldn’t affect his chances.
“It’s a joke,” said Patti Murphy, 63, of Fort Worth. “It’s just another way for them to try and get him out of their way.”
Others in the crowd said their support for Trump had dwindled since he left the White House, but the impending indictment made them more likely to back him in 2024 as they felt his anger was justified. .
At the same time, a criminal trial is unlikely to help Trump in a general election, especially with independents, who are fed up with his constant chaos. It provided an opening for alternatives like DeSantis, who should present themselves as champions of the former president’s politics, but without all of his baggage.
But there was no immediate sign that the party was ready to use the indictment to overtake him. Instead, Republicans, including members of Congress and Trump’s rivals, rushed to his defense en masse. In addition to DeSantis, former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, who has already declared her candidacy, called the indictment “more revenge than justice.” Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who is pondering a race, accused Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg of ‘undermining America’s faith in our legal system’ while sending a collection text funds to information.
Trump, meanwhile, tried to turn the public against the case. Early on March 18, amid reports that New York City police were preparing for a possible indictment, he posted a message on his social media site in which he said he expected to be arrested within a few days. days.
Although it never happened (and his aides made it clear that it was not based on any inside information), Trump used the time to highlight the widely-discussed weaknesses in the case and to attack Bragg with a deluge of deeply personal – and sometimes racist – remarks. — attacks.
Trump also sought to project an air of force. The night of his shift, he traveled with aides to a college wrestling championship, where he spent hours waving to supporters and posing for photos. On the way home, the assembled entourage watched mixed martial arts cage fights aboard their plane.
And last weekend, Trump held a rally in Waco, Texas, where he spoke out about the case in front of thousands of supporters.
People who have spoken with Trump in recent weeks have described him as both angry and indifferent to the prospect of charges. Freshman Republican Rep. Mark Alford of Missouri said Trump was “optimistic” at a fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago the night before he was given an arrest warning.
Indeed, Trump has at times seemed to deny the seriousness of the situation. He and his aides were taken aback by the news on Thursday. And while flying back from his rally in Texas, Trump told reporters he thought the case had been dropped.
“I have no idea what’s going to happen, but I can tell you they have no case. So I think the case is — I think they’ve already dropped the case, from what I understand. I think it was dropped,” he said.
Still, Trump responded angrily when pressed, though he insisted he wasn’t frustrated.
Beyond the Manhattan case, Trump faces several other investigations, including a Georgia probe into his efforts to overturn the 2020 election results and a federal probe into his alleged mishandling of classified documents.
It remains unclear how the public might react if Trump ends up facing charges in additional cases, particularly if some lead to convictions and others are dismissed.
An indictment – or even a conviction – would not prevent Trump from running for president or being the Republican nominee.
In an acknowledgment of the former president’s influence on voters deciding next year’s GOP contest, those who were considering a primary challenge to Trump were quick to criticize the indictment. Without naming Trump, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis called the move “un-American.” Former Vice President Mike Pence, whose life was threatened after Trump incited an insurrection on the US Capitol, told CNN the charges were “outrageous”.
This posture speaks to short-term incentives for Republicans to steer clear of anything that might antagonize Trump’s loyal base. But the indictment raises deep questions for the future of the GOP, especially as Trump faces the possibility of additional charges soon in Atlanta and Washington. While that may galvanize its supporters, the turmoil could threaten the GOP’s standing in heavily swing-state suburbs that have dropped out of the party in three successive elections, eroding its grip on the White House, Congress and key governorships.
Trump has spent four decades circumventing this kind of legal danger and expressed his confidence again on Thursday night, blaming the “thugs and freaks of the radical left.”
“THIS IS AN ATTACK ON OUR COUNTRY THAT HAS NEVER BEEN SEEN BEFORE,” Trump wrote on his social media site.
Trump is “ready to fight,” his attorney, Joe Tacopina, told Fox News.
Trump is expected to surrender to authorities next week on charges related to silent payments made during the 2016 presidential campaign to women who claimed to have had extramarital sex. At this time, it’s unclear how the development will resonate with voters. Polls show Trump remains the undisputed front-runner for the Republican nomination, and his standing hasn’t faltered even amid widespread news coverage of the expected charges.
Trump’s campaign and his allies had long hoped an indictment would serve as a rallying cry for his supporters, angering his “Make America Great Again” base, luring small dollar donations and forcing potential rivals of Trump in the delicate position of having to defend him – or risk their wrath.
Indeed, Trump’s campaign began fundraising on the news almost immediately after it broke, emailing supporters with the subject line in all caps “BREAKING: THE UNKNOWN PRESIDENT TRUMP.”
At Trump’s first rally of the 2024 campaign, held in Texas over the weekend, supporters expressed widespread disgust with the investigation and insisted the case is not wouldn’t affect his chances.
“It’s a joke,” said Patti Murphy, 63, of Fort Worth. “It’s just another way for them to try and get him out of their way.”
Others in the crowd said their support for Trump had dwindled since he left the White House, but the impending indictment made them more likely to back him in 2024 as they felt his anger was justified. .
At the same time, a criminal trial is unlikely to help Trump in a general election, especially with independents, who are fed up with his constant chaos. It provided an opening for alternatives like DeSantis, who should present themselves as champions of the former president’s politics, but without all of his baggage.
But there was no immediate sign that the party was ready to use the indictment to overtake him. Instead, Republicans, including members of Congress and Trump’s rivals, rushed to his defense en masse. In addition to DeSantis, former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, who has already declared her candidacy, called the indictment “more revenge than justice.” Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who is pondering a race, accused Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg of ‘undermining America’s faith in our legal system’ while sending a collection text funds to information.
Trump, meanwhile, tried to turn the public against the case. Early on March 18, amid reports that New York City police were preparing for a possible indictment, he posted a message on his social media site in which he said he expected to be arrested within a few days. days.
Although it never happened (and his aides made it clear that it was not based on any inside information), Trump used the time to highlight the widely-discussed weaknesses in the case and to attack Bragg with a deluge of deeply personal – and sometimes racist – remarks. — attacks.
Trump also sought to project an air of force. The night of his shift, he traveled with aides to a college wrestling championship, where he spent hours waving to supporters and posing for photos. On the way home, the assembled entourage watched mixed martial arts cage fights aboard their plane.
And last weekend, Trump held a rally in Waco, Texas, where he spoke out about the case in front of thousands of supporters.
People who have spoken with Trump in recent weeks have described him as both angry and indifferent to the prospect of charges. Freshman Republican Rep. Mark Alford of Missouri said Trump was “optimistic” at a fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago the night before he was given an arrest warning.
Indeed, Trump has at times seemed to deny the seriousness of the situation. He and his aides were taken aback by the news on Thursday. And while flying back from his rally in Texas, Trump told reporters he thought the case had been dropped.
“I have no idea what’s going to happen, but I can tell you they have no case. So I think the case is — I think they’ve already dropped the case, from what I understand. I think it was dropped,” he said.
Still, Trump responded angrily when pressed, though he insisted he wasn’t frustrated.
Beyond the Manhattan case, Trump faces several other investigations, including a Georgia probe into his efforts to overturn the 2020 election results and a federal probe into his alleged mishandling of classified documents.
It remains unclear how the public might react if Trump ends up facing charges in additional cases, particularly if some lead to convictions and others are dismissed.
An indictment – or even a conviction – would not prevent Trump from running for president or being the Republican nominee.
