Washington: Donald Trump is set to be arraigned Tuesday after being indicted last week by a Manhattan grand jury on charges arising from hush money payments made to a porn star during his 2016 campaign, making him the first former US president to face a criminal charge and upending his bid to retake the White House in 2024.
The 76-year-old is expected to fly to New York City from his Mar-a-Lago home Monday and plans to return back to his resort in Florida following his court hearing, where he will address his supporters Tuesday night, his office said Sunday.
The grand jury Thursday voted to indict Trump, a Republican, for his role in paying money to porn star Stormy Daniels in an attempt to buy her silence over an alleged affair. The indictment remains under seal and it is not clear what crimes and how many criminal counts Trump has been charged with. CNN reported that the former president has been charged with more than 30 counts.
“Former President Donald J Trump, 45th President of the United States of America, will deliver remarks at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida Tuesday, April 4, 2023,” his presidential campaign announced.
Trump, who is the first former US president to face a criminal charge, will be arraigned Tuesday. The proceeding is expected to be brief. The charges in the indictment will be read to him at the hearing, which is set to last about 10-15 minutes.
He has denied all wrongdoing in connection with the payments made to Daniels, 44, ahead of the 2016 presidential election.
Following the indictment, the former president has been attacking both the prosecutor and the judge.
“The Judge ‘assigned’ to my Witch Hunt Case, a ‘Case’ that has never been charged before, hates me,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform and alleged that the judge was “hand-picked” by the Democratic district attorney investigating him.
The indictment comes as Trump faces legal hurdles in other potential criminal cases. Trump is currently the front-runner among all declared and potential contenders for the 2024 Republican White House nomination.
But there is nothing in US law that prevents a candidate who is found guilty of a crime from campaigning for and serving as president – even from prison.
Trump was twice impeached by the House of Representatives. He was acquitted by the Senate both times.
Appearing on Fox News, his attorney Jim Trusty alleged that the case is politically motivated.
“We should never have prosecutors acting out on political promises to target people. …I was a prosecutor for 27 years. We were supposed to be judicious when we got started, to figure out, where the evidence leads, and follow the rule of law. And instead, we have people announcing if you elect me, I’ll indict Donald Trump,” he told Fox News.
“So, it’s no real surprise that when you have people breaking the ethics of prosecution for political persecution, that they’re going to have suspect indictments. Their motivations are suspect. Their willingness to listen to a witness like Michael Cohen makes them suspect,” he said.
“In this case, it seems like what we’re guessing the indictment will look like is it will have legal frailties that will be subjected to a very legitimate motion to dismiss early on,” Trusty said.
He said Trump is a big believer in free speech and has got strong opinions.
“I think he’s very frustrated for some of his very loyal employees being caught up in the machinery of prosecution. And so he feels strongly about,” he alleged.
“I’ve never had a case in front of this judge. I certainly reserve judgment. I think we’re in a position where a fair mind getting to a jury and changes the venue and some of the issues there — I think a fair-minded judge is likely to recognise there’s something fundamentally wrong that we’re crossing the Rubicon with this political persecution,” he said.
He said the indictment is going to be legally frail.
“Thankfully, I suspect the indictment is going to be legally frail, and there’ll be an opportunity for a judge to do the right thing. You know, we wish prosecutors would do the right thing. But the judges are kind of the backstop on that. So my hope is that despite some of the hysterics at the moment, despite some emotionality and frustration, the president certainly deserves to feel that this judge will do the right thing when he’s faced with significant legal motions,” Trusty said.
PTI