President Donald Trump was arraigned today in Washington, D.C., after his third indictment, this time on charges related to Jan. 6, 2021. The former president referred to his indictment and arraignment as the “persecution of a political opponent” by Biden’s federal government as he left the hearing.
Trump delivered his comments, which were broadcast on TV, to the press. He pleaded not guilty at the hearing to federal charges that he conspired to remain in power after the 2020 election, as PJ Media’s Paula Bolyard reported. Many Republicans, including legal experts Mike Davis and Mark Levin, have slammed the charges as bogus and politically-driven or outright “election interference.” The newest indictment came just after testimony from Hunter Biden’s former business partner Devon Archer implicated Joe Biden in Hunter’s foreign money deals.
Trump: “This is a very sad day for America and it was also very sad driving through Washington, DC and seeing the filth and decay and all of the broken buildings and walls with graffiti.” pic.twitter.com/k0NXd7KGIj
— TheBlaze (@theblaze) August 3, 2023
“This is a very sad day for America,” Trump began, speaking to the press while holding an umbrella. “And it was also very sad driving through Washington, D.C., and seeing the filth and the decay and all of the broken buildings and walls and the graffiti. This is not the place that I left.” Violent crime is on the rise in D.C. under the watch of the Biden administration and Democrat Mayor Muriel Bowser.
Trump went on, “It’s a very sad thing to see it when you look at what’s happening. This is a persecution of a political opponent; this was never supposed to happen in America.”
He indicated that his strong polling numbers played a role in his indictment by the Biden Justice Department. “This is the persecution of the person that’s leading by very, very substantial numbers in the Republican primary, and leading Biden by a lot,” he insisted.
A New York Times/Siena College poll at the end of July showed Trump at 54% support in the Republican primary, with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in second place with 17%. A June FiveThirtyEight aggregate of national Republican primary polls had Trump at 53.1% with DeSantis at 21.2%. Meanwhile, on July 4, Newsweek reported that Trump holds a “big lead over Biden” in swing states.
The former president argued his indictment is election interference in his post-hearing comments. ”So if you can’t beat him, you persecute him — or you prosecute him,” Trump concluded. “We can’t let this happen in America.”
Before he left for the hearing, Trump posted on Truth Social, “I AM NOW GOING TO WASHINGTON, D.C., TO BE ARRESTED FOR HAVING CHALLENGED A CORRUPT, RIGGED, & STOLEN ELECTION. IT IS A GREAT HONOR, BECAUSE I AM BEING ARRESTED FOR YOU. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!”
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