Donald Trump is announced as a boxer before the match. “Ladies and gentlemen,” a long echoing voice said, “Hi, please, future President of the United States.” With a grin from ear to ear, Trump emerges from behind three American flags, accompanied by loud rock music. “United States of America!” clears his audience. ‘United States of America! United States of America!’
At his golf club in New Jersey, Trump grinned at cheers for minutes Tuesday night. Then he grabs his platform and starts in front of the rolling news cameras. “What an honor it is to be here” begins.
About the author
Thomas Ruepp is the US correspondent for De Volkskrant. Lives in New York. He is the author of the book Laura H.
A few hours earlier, during his arrest in Miami, Trump was obsessively out of the picture. His car plunged into the court’s underground parking garage without stopping. There, the former president was arrested within an hour and a half, brought to trial and then released on parole.
The judiciary suspects Trump of illegally withholding classified documents from his presidency. His accusation could not be registered. According to those present, he appeared calm and tense in court.
Not much of that on a Tuesday night. “Today we have witnessed the most egregious and egregious abuse of power in the history of our country,” Trump said in New Jersey. cheers. He laughs. The difference is clear. This is a home game.
Serious doubts
Trump’s speech marks the end of a day of déjà vu. This is the second criminal case already against him. In April, Trump was arrested in New York for hush money payments to his mistress with campaign funds. Then, too, he held a raucous home press conference that evening, dismissing his trial as a political attack orchestrated by his enemy, Joe Biden, and the Democrats.
Trump also said of Biden on Tuesday night, “A corrupt president in power suspended his biggest political opponent on false and fabricated charges.” In the midst of a presidential campaign he loses.” But this time Trump has to work a little harder to make the point.
The suspicions in the documents case are more serious, the evidence is stronger and the potential penalty is higher, but not only that: the case is clearer. This is exactly what is dangerous for Trump.
While the New York criminal case involves a complex tax case that few Americans understand, the charge here is quite clear: Trump possessed documents he was not supposed to have, on matters of state importance, and refused to return them. There is even an audio recording of him admitting that the entire country has seen images of piles of papers bobbing around his Florida home.
‘I didn’t do anything wrong’
Even some Republicans criticized him unexpectedly and cautiously on Tuesday. Presidential candidate Nikki Haley said on Fox News that Trump, if proven, “was incredibly reckless on national security.” Candidate Tim Scott spoke of a “serious case with serious allegations”. That too was different the last time.
This time Trump can’t avoid actually responding to the doubts. “I haven’t done anything wrong,” he said Tuesday night in New Jersey. “Whatever the president decides to take home is his.” According to the judicial authority, this is clearly not true. State records are the property of the state, states the Presidential Record Act of 1978. After the presidential term ends, they must be transferred to the National Archives.
Special counsel Jack Smith, who is leading the prosecution, and suspect Donald Trump were in the same room for the first time during the hearing in Miami. During his speech, Trump called him a “vicious Trump hater”.
The indictment read there consisted of 37 individual criminal offenses. Trump has said through his lawyers that he is “innocent” in every case. The former president allegedly lied about documents still in her possession and actively plotted to hide them from the government. The indictment released shows Trump kept hundreds of documents in unsafe areas, including an empty ballroom, bathroom and even a shower.
happy birthday
This first hearing is the beginning of a criminal process that could take months, if not years. It is not yet known when the next step will be taken. This allegation has not hindered his campaign for the time being. He is still far ahead of his competitors. According to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released Monday, 81 percent of Republican voters believe this issue is politically motivated, just as Trump claims.
The former president of New Jersey said, “Only I can save this country.” “They don’t come for me, they come for you, and I’m the only one standing in the way.”
On Tuesday evening there was another discrepancy with his earlier arrest. In the middle of his speech, after he took a sip of water, Trump suddenly yelledhappy birthdayin – to himself. The former president will turn 77 on Wednesday. Soon his fans adopted the song from him. Trump exclaimed, “Happy birthday, right?” “We’re going to make it the best birthday ever.”
Evil tv scholar. Proud twitter aficionado. Travel ninja. Hipster-friendly zombie fanatic.