Accusation against Trump stirs race for the White House in 2024

The formal indictment against former President Donald Trump puts the race for the 2024 US Presidency in a new phase. The Republican pledged to remain in the race for the White House even in the face of criminal charges.

Trump has often called the various investigations a “witch hunt,” trying to sway public opinion about them by casting himself as a victim of what he said were political actions led by Democratic prosecutors.

The former president was formally charged by a Manhattan grand jury, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter. It is the first time in US history that a current or former president has faced such criminal charges.

The prosecution is investigating Trump for his alleged role in a bribery payment and cover-up scheme involving adult film star Stormy Daniels at the time of the 2016 presidential election.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office will contact Trump’s lawyers to discuss his surrender to face the prosecution.

This decision will certainly have consequences across the country, putting the US political system – which has never had one of its former leaders faced with criminal charges, much less while still trying to run again for president – in a situation it has never faced before.

“Witch hunt” and shock

Shortly after being charged, Trump released a statement alleging that it was “political persecution and election interference to the highest degree in history.”

“I believe this witch hunt is going to bounce back hard on Joe Biden [atual presidente dos EUA]”, declared the former president.

“The American people realize exactly what the Radical Left Democrats are doing here. Everyone can see this. So our movement, and our party – united and strong – will defeat Alvin Bragg, and then we will defeat Joe Biden, and we will remove every last rogue Democrat from office so we can MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”

As the prosecution approaches, Trump urged his supporters to protest his eventual arrest, echoing calls to action after the 2020 election when he sought to reverse his defeat by President Joe Biden.

Trump’s attorney, Alina Habba, said in a statement that Trump “is the victim of a corrupt and twisted version of the American justice system and history. He will have justice.”

However, the former president was caught off guard by the grand jury’s decision to formally indict him, according to a person who spoke with Trump as he prepared for the indictment to take place last week. The politician thought this could take weeks – or more.

“Is this a shock today? Of course it is,” said the source, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Republicans support Trump

Congressional Republicans quickly rallied to the defense of Donald Trump, attacking District Attorney Alvin Bragg on Twitter and accusing the Manhattan District Attorney of a political witch hunt.

“Outrageous,” wrote House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan of Ohio, one of the chairmen of the Republican committee that demanded that Bragg testify before Congress regarding the investigation into the former president.

Senator Ted Cruz, Republican of Texas, called the charge “completely unprecedented” and called it “a catastrophic escalation in using the justice system as a weapon.”

But at least one moderate Republican told the CNN who trusted the legal system.

“I believe in the rule of law. I think we have checks and balances and I trust the system,” said Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska.

“We have a judge. We have jurors. There are appeals. So, I believe that, in the end, justice will be served. If he’s guilty, it will show. But if it is not, that will also be shown”, added Bacon to CNN .

progress of investigations

Prosecutor Bragg’s office signaled in early March that it was close to bringing charges against Trump after inviting the former president to testify before the grand jury investigating the alleged bribery scheme.

Potential defendants in New York are required by law to be notified and invited to appear before a grand jury when charges are being considered. But Trump ended up refusing to face the jury.

The lengthy investigation began with Bragg’s predecessor, Cy Vance, when Trump was still president. She is referring to a $130,000 payment made by Trump’s then personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, to actress Stormy Daniels in late October 2016, days before that year’s presidential election, to silence her and prevent her from revealing an alleged affair with the Republican a decade earlier — which Trump denies.

The investigation is centered on the payment made to Daniels and the Trump Organization’s reimbursement to attorney Cohen.

According to court filings in Cohen’s federal indictment, Trump Organization executives authorized payments to him totaling $420,000 to cover his original payment of $130,000, plus tax obligations and a bonus reward.

The Trump Organization has recorded the refunds as a legal expense on its books of account. Trump denied knowing about the payment.

Problems with Justice

Trump has long avoided legal consequences for actions in the personal, professional and political spheres of his life. He settled a number of private civil lawsuits over the years and paid to settle disputes related to the Trump Organization.

As president, he suffered two impeachments in the House, led by Democrats, but avoided conviction by the Senate.

In December, the Trump Organization was convicted on multiple counts of tax fraud, although Trump himself was not charged in that case.

Trump’s Republican allies – as well as his same-party rivals for the 2024 race – have criticized the Manhattan district attorney’s office, and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has vowed to open an investigation into the matter.