Legal defense fund being created to cover legal costs of Trump's team

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
31 Jul 2023 11:30

Former US President Donald Trump and his aides are in the process of establishing a new fund to assist the Trump team with legal costs as instigations and indictments loom over.

Republican presidential candidate former president Donald Trump speaks at the Republican Party of Iowa's 2023 Lincoln Dinner in Des Moines, Iowa, Friday, July 28, 2023. (AP)

A legal defense fund has been created by the team of Former US President Donald Trump to cover part of the legal bills flowing from the recent investigations and criminal indictments, a new report by the New York Times revealed.

The fund, according to an individual cited by the report as being familiar with the planning, will be called the Patriot Legal Defense Fund Inc. and will cover investigation and indictment costs of a group of people, whose names remain unclear, but will not cover the legal costs for Trump himself.

Michael Glassner, Trump's political advisor, and Lynne Patton, also a Trump aide, will handle the fund according to the New York Times.

The report further revealed that the political action committee of Trump reportedly covered legal fees for the former president and some of his witnesses in recent months; spending more than $40 million on attorneys in the first half of this year.

If convicted, Trump vows to continue presidential race

This comes after Trump vowed, on Friday, that in case he is convicted of any of the felony charges he is currently facing, he will continue to run in the presidential race.

This comes a day after federal prosecutors added three counts in connection with his alleged mishandling of classified documents after leaving office.

During an interview with right-wing radio host John Fredericks, Trump said there was nothing in the Constitution, stating that getting sentenced would stop his campaign.

"And even the radical left crazies are saying not at all, that wouldn't stop (me) -- and it wouldn't stop me either. These people are sick. What they are doing is absolutely horrible," he said.

Previous presidents -- including Barack Obama and George W. Bush -- "took documents," he says, suggesting that they engaged in actions similar to the alleged crimes for which he has been charged.

"Nobody has ever gone through this. This is crazy," he added.

Trump was indicted in June over the mishandling of classified documents that contain top secret nuclear and defense information.

The 77-year-old former President is currently leading the GOP race and is likely to face President Joe Biden for a potential rematch ahead of the upcoming elections.

However, prospects of a third party are fueling speculation that Biden may face some serious challenges as voters who dislike both Trump and Biden tend to rather be Democrats or Democratic-leaning independents.