Trump pushes for political comeback, legal threats push back
A report by The Associated Press explains the many legal files which Trump faces that could potentially pose as a block in his way toward a second presidential term.
-
Trump is bombarded with legal files; while this would end any politician's career, Trump maintains a nonchalant, cool exterior.
A report by The Associated Press explains the many political face-offs that former US President Donald Trump is experiencing as he seeks another term as president.
Trump is facing many investigations, particularly regarding the January 6 riots which wreaked havoc on Capitol Hill, in addition to fraud accusations. These pose as legal threats to the ex-President and have projected their effects through a recent poll conducted by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, which measures satisfaction in Trump by political party.
44% of Republicans do not want Trump to run for another term
Trump's popularity has declined among Republicans, though not severely: Compared to a 78% Trump favorability in September 2020, this number has decreased to 71%. However, 'only' 56% of Republicans want Trump to run for president in 2024, while 44% of Republicans do not want him to.
However, despite these results, Trump has been nonchalant. On a golf course, as someone was introducing Trump as the "45th president of the United States," he interjected, "45th and 47th."
Trump's affiliates describe him as "unbothered, emboldened by a sense of invincibility that has allowed him to recover from devastating turns, including two impeachments, that would have ended the careers of other politicians," as written in the report.
“He’s in great spirits,” said Darrell Scott, a pastor and Trump ally, who recently met Trump.
Trump pushing forward vs. legal cases pushing back
However, as Trump attempts to advance his interests, legal cases have been working against him.
Judges and investigators in Georgia have been working to investigate whether or not Trump trespassed the law by pressuring Georgia officials to cancel Biden's 2020 victory in the elections. The Fulton County Attorney in Georgia, Fani Willis, said her office received information that there is a possibility that the 2020 elections were "subject to possible criminal disruptions."
Meanwhile, in New York, an attorney-general, Leticia James, said in a court hearing that she and her office have discovered evidence that Trump's company used fraudulent or misleading valuations of its golf clubs, skyscrapers, and other assets to secure loans and tax benefits.
In parallel with James' team, the Manhattan District Attorney's Office has been working on a criminal investigation against the Trump Organization and its finance chief, Allen Weisselberg.
In Washington, the January 6 committee has also been looking into the Capitol Hill attacks that Trump has deep business in.
In the AP report, it was explained that Trump was "largely shielded from legal consequence. But no longer."
Read more: Capitol attack panel closes in on Trump with three new subpoenas
A former prosecutor from Miami, David Weinstein, said that Trump's legal issues until now have been largely related to "money things", where several lawsuits sought compensations. However, what Trump is facing now in Georgia and Washington is "more significant, because with those comes the potential exposure to criminal punishment.”
“If they can prove intention, knowledge, involvement in an ongoing conspiracy,” he said, ”that’s potential criminal exposure, something he’s never faced before.”
Despite all this, Trump and his affiliates are expected to "brush off the probes as nothing more than politically motivated "witch hunts" aimed at damaging his future political prospects."
“It’s a badge of honor to be subpoenaed,” said Stephanie Grisham, Trumps' former White House Secretary.
“It’s easy to say ‘It’s just another witch hunt’ because that’s what we said about everything,” she said. “People are doubling down. That’s what we do in TrumpWorld, we double down. And you just claim it’s a witch hunt, you claim it’s political theater. And that’s how you get your supporters to continue to donate money and to continue to believe they’re on the good side.”
