Former President Donald Trump called his indictment from a Manhattan jury “Election Interference at the highest level” in a statement Thursday evening.
A New York grand jury voted to indict Trump on Thursday following an investigation led by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg into the former president’s role in a $130,000 hush money payout scheme to adult film star Stormy Daniels in 2016.
The former president—who is the first former or current U.S. president to face criminal charges—maintained throughout Bragg’s investigation that he was innocent, calling the probe into his involvement in the hush money scandal a “witch hunt.” Trump’s former personal attorney, Michael Cohen, was sentenced in 2018 after pleading guilty to breaking campaign finance laws in connection with the payments made to Daniels.
In a statement obtained by Newsweek, Trump continued to claim that the grand jury had indicted “a completely innocent person.”
“This is Political Persecution and Election Interference at the highest level in history,” the former president said. “From the time I came down the golden escalator at Trump Tower, and even before I was sworn in as your President of the United States, the Radical Left Democrats – the enemy of the hard-working men and women of this Country – have been engaged in a Witch-Hunt to destroy the Make America Great Again movement.
“The Democrats have lied, cheated and stolen in their obsession with trying to ‘Get Trump,’ but now they’ve done the unthinkable – indicting a completely innocent person in an act of blatant Election Interference,” Trump continued. “Never before in our Nation’s history has this been done.”
Trump also specifically called out Bragg for “doing Joe Biden‘s dirty work” instead of “stopping the unprecedented crime wave taking over New York City.
“I believe this Witch-Hunt will backfire massively on Joe Biden,” Trump concluded. “The American people realize exactly what the Radical Left Democrats are doing here. Everyone can see it. So our Movement, and our Party – united and strong – will first defeat Alvin Bragg, and then we will defeat Joe Biden, and we are going to throw every last one of these Crooked Democrats out of office so we can MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
Trump also posted the full statement to his Truth Social account, and called the indictment in a separate post, “AN ATTACK ON OUR COUNTRY.”
“These Thugs and Radical Left Monsters have just INDICATED the 45th President of the United States of America, and the leading Republican Candidate, by far, for the 2024 Nomination for President,” Trump wrote. “THIS IS AN ATTACK ON OUR COUNTRY THE LIKES OF WHICH HAS NEVER BEEN SEEN BEFORE.”
Some prominent Republicans echoed Trump’s outcry against the indictment on Thursday. Texas Senator Ted Cruz tweeted, “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.”
Georgia Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene also reposted a copy of Trump’s statement on her Twitter account, writing, “I stand with Trump!!!”
DNC National Press Secretary Ammar Moussa said in a statement posted to Twitter, “No matter what happens in Trump’s upcoming legal proceedings, it’s obvious the Republican Party remains firmly in the hold of Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans.”
Specific charges against Trump are not known at the time, but the New York Times reports that the charges will likely be announced after Trump is arraigned. The Times also notes that prosecutors working for Bragg will likely ask Trump to surrender and face arraignment in Manhattan.
As the leading Republican candidate for the 2024 presidential race, Trump will still be legally allowed to run even after facing criminal charges.
Trump’s attorney, Joe Tacopina, previously told MSNBC, “If they bring this case, I believe this will catapult him into the White House.”
“I believe it, because this will show how they’re weaponizing the justice system,” he added.
Newsweek has reached out to the White House via email for comment.
Update 3/30/23, 7:20 p.m. ET: This story has been updated with additional information and background.
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