Trump news today: Donald Trump expects arrest on Tuesday as Stormy Daniels ‘indictment’ looms

What will happen to the 2024 race and Donald Trump’s ability to participate if he faces a criminal indictment?

The short answer is, not a lot.

The Independentby John Bowden explains:

Donald Trump’s recent remarks echo his appeals to supporters who have fueled the attack on the US Capitol and his apocalyptic visions of America since his tenure and on the campaign trail, outlining his us versus them political stakes and a war civil war that is brewing with grim conclusions — rhetoric that has gripped the GOP in the wake of Mr. Trump’s candidacy.

A five-year story finally seems to be nearing some sort of conclusion. The IndependentJohn Bowden returns to the saga which could lead to criminal proceedings against Donald Trump:

The Chief Judge of the Federal District Court in Washington, D.C. ordered Evan Corcoran — who represented Trump in the weeks leading up to last year’s FBI search of Mar-a-Lago — to testify before a grand jury regarding conversations he had with the former president about efforts to find and return classified documents to the US government.

Leading Republican politicians have been quick to defend Trump, despite the legal difficulties he appears to be facing over yet-unannounced charges.

Lawmakers who rushed to defend the ex-president did so unaware or unaware of a possible indictment; Republicans are waging a public relations battle meant to undermine any criminal case against the former president, the man who is still most likely to be the GOP nominee in 2024.

The new chief justice of the District Court in Washington, D.C., who will oversee special advocate investigations into former President Donald Trump by the Justice Department, was once a roommate of Trump’s Supreme Court appointee Brett Kavanaugh , while in law school.

Law enforcement agencies at the local, state and federal levels are reportedly preparing for the possibility that Donald Trump will be indicted as soon as next week in connection with the silent payment to Stormy Daniels.

Preliminary security assessments are underway and officials are discussing potential security plans near the Manhattan Criminal Court at 100 Center Street in the event Mr. Trump shows up in person to face charges, according to NBC News, citing five senior officials familiar with the preparations. .

After soliciting donations from supporters through his Truth Social account, Donald Trump again invoked inflammatory and apocalyptic rhetoric around his 2024 campaign and potential criminal charges after predicting he would be arrested on Tuesday.

On Saturday, another all-caps post – about 45 minutes after he asked his followers to “send your contribution” to his campaign – called on his supporters to “protest, protest, protest” to “save America”.

The post followed his other all-caps post urging his followers to “protest” after he was arrested next week.

In a follow-up article, he again asserted that the United States was being “driven into World War III” while the Biden administration was “killing our nation.”

A spokesperson for Mr Trump said he wrote his messages without any direct knowledge of the timing of any arrests.

Donald Trump’s critics and activist groups condemned his inflammatory rhetoric and a statement by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy as Republicans quickly rallied to defend the former president from possible criminal charges .

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also condemned Mr Trump’s “reckless” announcement predicting his arrest, which she said was used to “keep himself in the news and foment unrest among his people.” supporters” as he continues to use doomsday rhetoric surrounding his 2024 campaign and possible criminal indictments.

The Republican leader released a statement accusing the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office of an “outrageous abuse of power” and said he would ask House committees “to immediately investigate whether federal funds are being used to overturn our democracy by interfering in elections with politically motivated prosecutions”. .

US Democratic Representative Ted Lieu hit back at Mr McCarthy’s suggestion that New York prosecutors are “subverting democracy” with their criminal investigation.

“Do you at least know what the charges are?” Did you see any of the grand jury evidence? No,” Mr. Lieu wrote. “You are a cowardly and partisan politician who does not respect the rule of law. In America, no one is above the law, including the person you bend your knee to.

On far-right social media, where QAnon influencers and Christian nationalists clash, debate the relevance of Marjorie Taylor Greene and whether Donald Trump is the savior of a nation and a party A declining Republican, the former president’s announcement that he expects arrest on Tuesday was the proof they needed that the Biden administration has weaponized the feds against him.

Mr Trump has called on his supporters to “protest, protest, protest”, but unlike the January 6 attack on the US Capitol, which was openly staged on social media platforms, the discussion of Trump’s potential arrest Mr. Trump has largely revolved around the Manhattan borough’s whistleblowing. attorney’s investigation and echoing similar inflammatory and dramatic rhetoric about the state of the United States.

QAnon accounts with many followers on Truth Social echoed their accelerationist “trust the plan” slogan, saying Mr Trump’s potential arrest would trigger a national downfall. Others said his arrest would make him a martyr around whom his supporters would rally.

QAnon influencer The Patriot Voice said the most effective protest would be wearing red “MAGA” hats. Laura Loomer told supporters not to show up outside Mar-a-Lago as the streets are likely to be closed; instead, she told people to show up to her first campaign rally of 2024 in Texas on March 25.

Ali Alexander, one of the organizers of the Stop the Steal rallies who is now campaigning alongside white supremacist Nick Fuentes for Kanye West, wrote: Close all roads to Mar-a-Lago. Now I am retired. I will pray for him though!

He also said he spoke to Alex Jones and “he’s not protesting either.”