Former President Donald Trump said Saturday he expects to be arrested on Tuesday based on “illegal leaks” from the Manhattan district attorney’s office, which is investigating Trump’s alleged role in hush money paid to Stormy Daniels. The former president also called for his supporters to protest in light of the news.
Trump, who is running for president again in 2024, made the prediction on his social media platform Truth Social, writing that “THE FAR & AWAY LEADING REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE & FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, WILL BE ARRESTED ON TUESDAY OF NEXT WEEK. PROTEST, TAKE OUR NATION BACK!”
Read the full statement from Trump below:
ILLEGAL LEAKS FROM A CORRUPT & HIGHLY POLITICAL MANHATTAN DISTRICT ATTORNEYS OFFICE, WHICH HAS ALLOWED NEW RECORDS TO BE SET IN VIOLENT CRIME & WHOSE LEADER IS FUNDED BY GEORGE SOROS, INDICATE THAT, WITH NO CRIME BEING ABLE TO BE PROVEN, & BASED ON AN OLD & FULLY DEBUNKED (BY NUMEROUS OTHER PROSECUTORS!) FAIRYTALE, THE FAR & AWAY LEADING REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE & FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, WILL BE ARRESTED ON TUESDAY OF NEXT WEEK. PROTEST, TAKE OUR NATION BACK!
While it is unclear what the criminal charges would be against Trump, reports about Democrat Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s case related to porn star Daniels and the former president indicated in recent weeks that an indictment decision could be near.
The case appeared to progress this week when Daniels’ lawyer wrote on social media that she met with Bragg’s office upon request and that she agreed to serve as a witness if needed.
At the request of the Manhattan DA’s office Stormy Daniels and I met with prosecutors today. Stormy responded to questions and has agreed to make herself available as a witness, or for further inquiry if needed. #teamstormy pic.twitter.com/BlhlZld6qG
— clark brewster (@cbrew1) March 15, 2023
Bragg, who was financially tied to Democrat megadonor George Soros in his campaign for DA, began relitigating Daniels’ story “to jump-start [the DA office’s] criminal investigation” into Trump within Bragg’s first year in office, per the New York Times.
The investigation includes Trump’s former personal attorney Michael Cohen, who has said he was pressured to make a $130,000 hush money payment on behalf of the former president to Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election.
Cohen in 2018 was sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty to numerous crimes involving tax evasion, arranging payments to silence women, and misleading Congress about past business dealings in Russia.
If Trump’s expectation comes to fruition, it would mark the first time in history a former president has been indicted.
After Trump posted on Truth Social about the matter, a Trump spokesperson issued a statement clarifying that Trump has received “no notification” besides “illegal leaks from the Justice Dept. and the DA’s office” to media outlets about the arrest.
“There has been no notification, other than illegal leaks from the Justice Dept. and the DA’s office, to NBC and other fake news carriers, that the George Soros-funded Radical Left Democrat prosecutor in Manhattan has decided to take his Witch-Hunt to the next level,” the spokesperson stated. “President Trump is rightfully highlighting his innocence and the weaponization of our injustice system. He will be in Texas next weekend for a giant rally. Make America Great Again!”
Word of the possible imminent indictment of Trump drew substantial blowback from Republicans, including leaders like House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), Sen. JD Vance (R-OH), and former New York gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin (R):
Here we go again — an outrageous abuse of power by a radical DA who lets violent criminals walk as he pursues political vengeance against President Trump.
I’m directing relevant committees to immediately investigate if federal funds are being used to subvert our democracy by… https://t.co/elpbh7LeWn
— Kevin McCarthy (@SpeakerMcCarthy) March 18, 2023
I’ve been asked by multiple reporters if an indictment would lead me to rescind my endorsement of Donald Trump. The answer is: hell no. A politically motivated prosecution makes the argument for Trump stronger. We simply don’t have a real country if justice depends on politics.
— J.D. Vance (@JDVance1) March 18, 2023
Alvin Bragg may very well be the most dangerous, divisive, incompetent, and compromised District Attorney in America. On Day ONE, my FIRST action as Governor would have been to tell Bragg he was being fired.
— Lee Zeldin (@LeeMZeldin) March 18, 2023
