Updated: 3pm (AEDT)
New York, US
Reuters
Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury after a probe into hush money paid to porn star Stormy Daniels, becoming the first former US president to face criminal charges even as he makes another run for the White House.
The specific charges are not yet known, as the indictment remains under seal. CNN on Thursday reported Trump faces more than 30 counts related to business fraud.
Former US President Donald Trump arrives onstage to announce that he will once again run for US President in the 2024 U.S. presidential election, during an event at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, US, on 15th November, 2022. PICTURE: Reuters/Jonathan Ernst/File photo.
Trump said he was “completely innocent” and indicated he would not drop out of the 2024 presidential race. He accused Bragg, a Democrat, of trying to hurt his chances of winning re-election against Democratic President Joe Biden.
“This is Political Persecution and Election Interference at the highest level in history,” he said in a statement.
Shortly after, Trump appealed to supporters to provide money for a legal defense. He has raised over $US2 million, according to his campaign, since he incorrectly predicted on 18th March that he would be arrested four days later.
Trump, the frontrunner for the 2024 Republican nomination according to polling, received support from a number of his potential challengers on Thursday including Florida Governor Ron Desantis and former Vice President Mike Pence.
“This will only further serve to divide our country,” Pence said.
While the White House did not comment, Democrats said Trump was not immune from the rule of law.
“I encourage both Mr Trump’s critics and supporters to let the process proceed peacefully and according to the law,” said the top Democrat in the Senate, Chuck Schumer.
The charges will likely be unsealed by a judge in the coming days. Trump will have to travel to Manhattan for fingerprinting and other processing at that point.
Bragg’s office said it had contacted Trump’s attorney to coordinate a surrender, which a court official said would likely occur next Tuesday.
Trump’s lawyers Susan Necheles and Joseph Tacopina said they will “vigorously fight” the charges.
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REACTION TO FORMER PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP’S INDICTMENT
TRUMP IN A STATEMENT SAID HE WAS “COMPLETELY INNOCENT”:
“This is Political Persecution and Election Interference at the highest level in history.”
FLORIDA GOVERNOR AND POTENTIAL CHALLENGER FOR THE 2024 REPUBLICAN NOMINATION RON DESANTIS ON TWITTER:
“The weaponization of the legal system to advance a political agenda turns the rule of law on its head. It is un-American…Florida will not assist in an extradition request given the questionable circumstances…”
TRUMP’S FORMER VICE PRESIDENT AND POTENTIAL CHALLENGER FOR THE REPUBLICAN NOMINATION MIKE PENCE ON CNN:
“I think this is an outrage but I also think at a time when the American people are struggling so much, that this will only further serve to divide our country.”
US SENATE MAJORITY LEADER CHUCK SCHUMER, A DEMOCRAT, IN A STATEMENT:
“Mr Trump is subject to the same laws as every American. He will be able to avail himself of the legal system and a jury, not politics, to determine his fate according to the facts and the law…I encourage both Mr Trump’s critics and supporters to let the process proceed peacefully and according to the law.”
TRUMP’S FORMER UN AMBASSADOR AND CANDIDATE FOR THE REPUBLICAN NOMINATION NIKKI HALEY ON TWITTER:
“This is more about revenge than it is about justice.”
TRUMP’S FORMER LAWYER RUDY GIULIANI ON TWITTER:
“The 45th President of the United States, Donald J Trump, has been indicted by a Grand Jury in New York following District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s irresponsible and politically-motivated efforts to take him down. A sad day for America.”
FORMER US HOUSE SPEAKER NANCY PELOSI, A DEMOCRAT, IN A STATEMENT:
“The Grand Jury has acted upon the facts and the law. No one is above the law, and everyone has the right to a trial to prove innocence. Hopefully, the former President will peacefully respect the system, which grants him that right.”
DEMOCRATIC US REPRESENTATIVE ADAM SCHIFF ON TWITTER:
“The indictment of a former president is unprecedented. But so too is the unlawful conduct in which Trump has been engaged. A nation of laws must hold the rich and powerful accountable, even when they hold high office. Especially when they do. To do otherwise is not democracy.”
MICHAEL COHEN, FORMER LAWYER TO TRUMP, ON MSNBC:
“Today’s indictment is not the end of the chapter, it is just the beginning…Accountability really matters.”
REPUBLICAN US SENATOR TED CRUZ ON TWITTER:
“The Democrat Party’s hatred for Donald Trump knows no bounds. The ‘substance’ of this political persecution is utter garbage. This is completely unprecedented and is a catastrophic escalation in the weaponization of the justice system.”
– Compiled by COSTAS PITAS and ANNA DRIVER/Reuters
The Manhattan investigation is one of several legal challenges facing Trump.
Bragg successfully prosecuted Trump’s business last year on tax-fraud charges, leading to a $US1.61 million criminal penalty.
The presiding judge in that case, New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan, is expected to oversee this case as well, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Trump could use the case to stoke anger among his core supporters, though other Republican voters might tire of the drama. Some 44 per cent of Republicans said he should drop out of the race if he is indicted, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released last week.
Outside the courthouse, several protesters silently held signs criticizing Trump. Authorities bolstered security around the courthouse after Trump called for nationwide protests on 18th March, recalling his charged rhetoric ahead of the 6th January, 2021, attack on the US Capitol by his supporters.
Hush money
Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, has said she received money in exchange for keeping silent about a sexual encounter she had with Trump in 2006.
The former president’s personal lawyer Michael Cohen has said he coordinated with Trump on the payments to Daniels and to a second woman, former Playboy model Karen McDougal, who also said she had a sexual relationship with him. Trump has denied having affairs with either woman.
Trump in 2018 initially disputed knowing anything about the payment to Daniels. He later acknowledged reimbursing Cohen for the payment, which he called a “simple private transaction.”
“No one is above the law,” Daniels’ lawyer Clark Brewster said on Twitter.
Cohen pleaded guilty to a campaign-finance violation in 2018 and served more than a year in prison. Federal prosecutors said he acted at Trump’s direction.
Cohen said he stood by his testimony and the evidence he provided to prosecutors. “Accountability matters,” he said in a statement.
No former or sitting US president has ever faced criminal charges.
Aside from this case, Trump faces two criminal investigations by a special counsel appointed by US Attorney General Merrick Garland and another criminal probe by a local prosecutor in Georgia.
Trump has escaped legal peril numerous times. In the White House, he weathered two attempts by Congress to remove him from office, including for the 6th January assault on the US Capitol by his supporters, as well as a years-long probe into his campaign’s contacts with Russia in 2016.
In last year’s tax-fraud trial, the Manhattan District Attorney’s office targeted Trump’s business but declined to charge Trump himself with financial crimes.
In the hush-money case, legal experts say Bragg is expected to argue Trump falsified business records to cover up another crime, such as violating federal campaign-finance law, which makes it a felony.
– Additional reporting by Reuters bureaux
