On Friday, the indictment against Trump was released to the public, which outlined a total of 37 charges against Trump and a personal aide, including willful retention of national defense information and making false statements.
The indictment comes following an investigation into Trump’s storage of sensitive materials at his Mar-a-Lago residence after leaving the White House, which culminated in a raid on the property in August.
The probe and related indictment have been met with criticism by Trump, who denies the allegations, as well as Republican lawmakers and fellow 2024 Republican presidential candidates.
Investigation
According to the Friday indictment, following Trump’s departure from the White House in January 2021, the former president took “scores of boxes” containing classified documents to his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida. The indictment alleges Trump was not authorized to possess or retain the sensitive materials.
In March 2022, the FBI launched a criminal investigation into Trump’s alleged mishandling of classified documents, which resulted in a grand jury issuing a subpoena for Trump to turn over sensitive materials.
The indictment alleges that Trump attempted to obstruct the FBI and grand jury probes and conceal his retention of classified documents.
Indictment
The indictment outlined nearly 40 charges being filed against charged Trump, including 31counts of willful retention of national defense information, one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice, one count of withholding a document or record, one count of corruptly concealing a document or record, one count of concealing a document in a federal investigation, scheming to conceal, and making false statements and representations.
Prosecutors also included co-charges against Trump’s personal aide, Waltine Nauta, with conspiracy to obstruct justice, withholding a document or record, corruptly concealing a document or record, concealing a document in a federal investigation and scheming to conceal.
In addition, the indictment charges Nauta with a separate count of making false statements and representations.
The indictment was approved by a grand jury and signed by US Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith.
Trump claims he is authorized to handle sensitive materials as he did under the Presidential Records Act. Trump has also criticized the Justice Department for not pursuing an investigation into alleged mishandling of classified materials by US President Joe Biden with the same rigor.
Republicans have characterized the probe as a “weaponization” of the federal government and its justice system. US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said that indicting the leading opposition candidate is “unconscionable” and vowed accountability.
Fellow Republican presidential candidates for the 2024 election, the pack of whom Trump currently leads, have also come out against the indictment. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said that the United States is witnessing an “uneven application of the law” based on political affiliation and promised to excise “political bias” if elected president.
Hearing
Trump is set to appear at a federal courthouse in Miami on Tuesday for his first hearing in the case.
The White House in a statement on Friday said the Biden administration is “always prepared” in the event of possible protests stemming from the court appearance.
Former US Assistant State Attorney in Florida David Cannady told Sputnik that, if convicted, Trump would likely be given a minimal sentence, or even pardoned by the sitting president. Trump, he added, could negotiate not to run for president again as part of a plea deal.
Moreover, a CBS New-YouGov poll published Sunday found that four in five likely Republican voters do not believe that a conviction in the case should impact his ability to serve again as president. More than three-quarters of respondents expressed concerns about the case being politically motivated, the poll found.
Trump is expected to deliver remarks on Tuesday evening after the hearing from the Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in New Jersey.