The former President of the United State, Donald Trump has said he expects to be “arrested” on Tuesday over an alleged hush-money payment to a porn star in 2016.
He urged his supporters to protest this however as prosecutors gave signs of moving closer to an indictment.
If indicted, he would be the first former US president to be charged with a crime. It would mark an explosive and unpredictable development in the 2024 White House race. This is especially considering that Trump seeks again to clinch the Republican nomination.
“Leading Republican candidate & former President of the United States of America will be arrested on Tuesday of next week,” the 76-year-old said Saturday on his Truth Social platform, adding: “Protest, take our nation back!”
Not even a conviction in the hush money case would prevent Trump from running. However, an indictment could have major consequences, galvanizing his critics and also electrifying his supporters.
Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy reacted with fury. He accused New York prosecutors of pursuing “political vengeance” against Trump. McCarthy vowed on Twitter to launch a congressional probe of the matter.
But his Democratic predecessor, Nancy Pelosi, who was still speaker when Trump was impeached for inciting the January 6, 2021 rioting in the US Capitol, said his announcement would “foment unrest among his supporters.”
“He cannot hide from his violations of the law, disrespect for our elections and incitements to violence,” Pelosi added.
Currently, the investigation, led by Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg, an elected Democrat, centres on $130,000 paid weeks before the 2016 polls to stop porn star, Stormy Daniels. It was to prevent her from going public about an affair she says she had with Trump years earlier.
Trump has denied having had an affair with Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, and has insisted the probe amounted to “blatant and unconstitutional” election interference and that the procedure wasn’t “a prosecution, it’s a persecution.”
His lawyer told CNBC on Friday that Trump if indicted, would surrender to face criminal charges.
cc: Punch Ng
