Indictment of Trump “is an outrage”

Former US President Donald Trump and his team are reported to be rolling out surrogates to hit Democrats, investigators and district attorney Alvin Bragg across various forms of media in an effort to shape the public narrative. Trump’s team also intends to keep track of members of Congress and potential Republican 2024 hopefuls who defend the former president. They plan to promote those responses while likely criticising those individuals who do not side with Trump. The team has been working on a media plan to respond to potential charges for the last two weeks.

Trump’s team is reportedly caught off guard by the timing of the indictment, with his advisers stating they were learning many of the details from media reports. The former president and his team did not expect the indictment to happen so soon. It has been reported that Trump would be able to appoint a three-judge panel that would quickly dismiss any charges against him, although it remains unclear if he is able to do so.

Trump is set to face New York property fraud charges, with a grand jury filing charges against his namesake firm, the Trump Organization, and its chief financial officer, Allen Weisselberg. Weisselberg has been charged with grand larceny and tax fraud for allegedly avoiding taxes on more than $1.7m in perks, including an apartment in Manhattan and leased Mercedes. It is still unclear what charges will be levelled against the Trump Organization.

As the trial approaches, Trump’s legal team has to consider how to get Trump in and out of New York. There have been preliminary conversations on this matter. However, the logistics of ensuring Trump would have a fair trial may prove difficult. It is unclear if the former president will testify, although it has been suggested that if he did, it would be under oath. Trump has previously been investigated on multiple occasions while in office, but this is the first time he is set to face criminal charges in a grand jury indictment.



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