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Trump Says He'd Act as ‘Dictator’ on First Day of His Second Term if Reelected in 2024

© AFP 2023 / MARK FELIXFormer US President and 2024 Republican Presidential hopeful Donald Trump speaks during a campaign event at Trendsetter Engineering, Inc. in Houston, Texas, on November 2, 2023.
Former US President and 2024 Republican Presidential hopeful Donald Trump speaks during a campaign event at Trendsetter Engineering, Inc. in Houston, Texas, on November 2, 2023.  - Sputnik International, 1920, 06.12.2023
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The former US president continues to address his 91 charges across four criminal cases as a “made up” political attack, rather than a legitimate legal process against him.
Former US President Donald Trump set off a media frenzy late Tuesday after he remarked during an interview that he would not be a dictator upon his return to the Oval Office if he manages to be reelected in 2024 - “except for day one."
The comments came during the former commander-in-chief's participation in a town hall event with Fox News' Sean Hannity that touched on a variety of topics, including the Iowa caucus in January, the cognitive state of US President Joe Biden and US foreign policy.
“You are promising America tonight you would never abuse power as retribution against anybody?” Hannity asked during the taped town hall, to which Trump responded by saying: “Except for day one."
Momentarily stunned, Hannity pressed Trump before the one-time president noted he sought to "close the border" and "drill, drill, drill," presumably referring to the US-Mexico border and his plans to expand oil drilling.
The town hall also saw Hannity ask Trump whether he would abuse his powers once returning to office to “go after people,” a question the former president failed to deny.
“You mean like they’re using right now?” Trump asked rhetorically, likely in reference to the various legal cases that he's since shot down as being part of a politically-motivated effort to block his reelection effort in the upcoming election.
From left to right, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy and Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., during a Republican presidential primary debate on Wednesday, Sept. 27, 2023. - Sputnik International, 1920, 06.12.2023
Analysis
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Trump has made claims in the past that if he were to be elected he would “appoint a real special prosecutor to go after the most corrupt president in the history of the United States of America, Joe Biden, and the entire Biden crime family.”

The former president further described the dozens of criminal charges filed against him since his departure from the White House as “nonsense” and “made up,” proceeding to compare his charges to the American gangster Al Capone, who he said was indicted once whereas he was indicted four times.

Trump is being prosecuted in two federal cases by special counsel Jack Smith, both of which stem from the improper retention and storage of classified government documents at the Mar-a-Lago estate and efforts to overturn the 2020 election results.

An additional two state-level cases accuse Trump of attempting to reverse election results in Georgia, as well as a case in New York related to hush money payments and the falsification of business records.

Following Trump’s interview with Hannity, the Biden campaign jumped on the former president’s “dictator” comment and weaponized his public affairs nightmare against him - posting his comments to a campaign email, as well as a clip to X.
"Donald Trump has been telling us exactly what he will do if he's reelected and tonight he said he will be a dictator on day one. Americans should believe him," Biden campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez said.
US President Joe Biden looks on during a meeting with Angolan President Joao Lourenco in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on November 30, 2023.  - Sputnik International, 1920, 06.12.2023
Americas
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During the interview, Trump told a 25-year-old anecdote about former US Senator Ted Kennedy calling Biden the “dumbest” person in the Senate. Trump also claimed that Biden "doesn't know he is alive" in reference to the Republican talking point that Biden is too old for the presidency, and that his cognitive health is declining.
Trump’s interview in Iowa takes place just 40 days before the first Republican primary contest of the season. Trump still leads largely in the polls with 61% of Republican primary voters choosing him as their frontrunner. The former president also continues to skip out on debating his fellow GOP candidates, including Wednesday’s fourth debate in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
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