U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday expressed his vehement support for French far-right politician Marine Le Pen, with a withering tirade against the court decision that knocked her out of the running for French president.
“The Witch Hunt against Marine Le Pen is another example of European Leftists using Lawfare to silence Free Speech, and censor their Political Opponent, this time going so far as to put that Opponent in prison,” Trump wrote in a long post on Truth Social.
Despite Trump’s assertion, Le Pen will not serve any time behind bars. While she was sentenced to a four-year prison term, two years were suspended and the other two would be served under house arrest. However, her prison sentence has been put on hold as the appeals process plays out.
Trump went on to compare Le Pen’s trial, in which she was found guilty of embezzling EU funds, to his own numerous legal woes.
“It is the same ‘playbook’ that was used against me by a group of Lunatics and Losers, like Norm Eisen, Andrew Weissmann, and Lisa Monaco,” said Trump, calling out some of the prosecutors that worked on cases against him over the years. He was eventually convicted in May 2024 on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to cover up a payment to a porn actress … after which he became the first convicted felon to win the U.S. presidency.
“I don’t know Marine Le Pen, but do appreciate how hard she worked for so many years. She suffered losses, but kept on going, and now, just before what would be a Big Victory, they get her on a minor charge that she probably knew nothing about — Sounds like a ‘bookkeeping’ error to me,” said Trump.
“It is all so bad for France, and the Great French People, no matter what side they are on. FREE MARINE LE PEN!” he added.
Le Pen was on Monday convicted of embezzling European Parliament funds and barred from running for elections for the next five years, disqualifying her from a 2027 bid to win the presidency.
She has appealed, with a higher court to issue a decision by next summer.
Many conservative reactions depicted the verdict as an antidemocratic attempt to bar an opposition candidate — and strong contender to win — from running for the French presidency. Among those slamming the court’s decision were Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, Dutch far-right firebrand Geert Wilders, the Kremlin and Elon Musk.
However, many of these talking points misrepresent what happened during Le Pen’s trial. Prosecutors put forward several pieces of particularly damning evidence and the defense did not dispute the substance of the charges.
The major controversy stems around the judges’ decision to immediately enact her ban on running for office, regardless of her decision to appeal. Typically in France, punishments are delayed as the appeals process plays out.
The court’s decision was rare, but not unprecedented, and based on what it viewed as the gravity of the case and the risk of repeat offenses.
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