Politics

By Nathan Layne and Rich McKay

PALM BEACH, Florida (Reuters) – Former President Donald Trump said on Tuesday night, hours after being charged in court, that he was the victim of election interference and he lashed out at New York prosecutor Alvin Bragg for bringing criminal charges against him.

“I never thought anything like this could happen in America,” Trump told supporters gathered at his Mar-a-Lago retreat in Palm Beach, Florida. “The only crime that I’ve committed has been to fearlessly defend our nation against those who seek to destroy it.”

Trump pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, as Manhattan prosecutors accused him of orchestrating payments to two women before the 2016 U.S. election to suppress publication of their sexual encounters with him.

Trump accused Bragg of being out to get him “before he knew anything about me.” He said the judge in the case, Juan Merchan, is “a Trump-hating judge.”

In a subdued tone, Trump reviewed all the various legal cases against him, from the handling of classified documents that were taken to Mar-a-Lago when Trump moved out of the White House in early 2021, and the election interference case he is facing in Georgia from the 2020 election.

The documents case is being pursued by a “lunatic special counsel,” Trump said, referring to prosecutor Jack Smith.

The various legal predicaments are entangling Trump has he makes another run for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024.

“Now, there’s massive election interference at a scale never seen,” he said.

(Reporting by Nathan Layne and Rich McKay in Palm Beach; Writing by Steve Holland; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Grant McCool)

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By Joseph Ax and Daniel Trotta

(Reuters) -Wisconsin voters on Tuesday elected liberal Janet Protasiewicz to the state Supreme Court, flipping control to a liberal majority ahead of rulings on an abortion ban and other matters that could play a role in the 2024 presidential election.

Protasiewicz defeated conservative candidate Daniel Kelly in what New York University’s Brennan Center for Justice called the most expensive judicial election in U.S. history. More than $42.3 million had been spent as of Monday, according to a WisPolitics.com review, far outstripping the previous record of $15.2 million.

The Associated Press called the race in favor of Protasiewicz.

In a major victory for abortion rights advocates, the result turns a court with a former 4-3 conservative majority to liberal control after 15 years, likely affecting a number of issues that have polarized Americans in other states such as voting rights and partisan control over drawing legislative maps.

But it was abortion that dominated the campaign, with the court expected in the coming months to decide whether to uphold the state’s 1849 abortion ban.

That law took effect after the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision last year to eliminate a nationwide right to abortion. The state’s Democratic attorney general, Josh Kaul, has challenged the statute’s validity in a lawsuit backed by Democratic Governor Tony Evers.

Protasiewicz put abortion at the center of her campaign, saying in one advertisement that she supports “a woman’s freedom to make her own decision on abortion.” Kelly, meanwhile, won the endorsement of anti-abortion groups.

The election’s outcome also holds major implications for the political future of the battleground state. Just as it did in 2020, the court could issue crucial voting decisions before and after the 2024 presidential election, when Wisconsin is again poised to be a vital swing state.

In addition, the court may revisit the state’s congressional and legislative maps, which Republicans have drawn to maximize their political advantage.

While the election is technically nonpartisan, neither Protasiewicz nor Kelly made much effort to hide their ideological bent. The state Democratic and Republican parties poured resources into their favored campaigns, and outside organizations spent millions of dollars supporting their preferred candidate, including anti- and pro-abortion rights groups.

Democrats asserted a Kelly victory could have endangered democracy itself in Wisconsin, noting that a lawsuit from Republican Donald Trump challenging his presidential election loss to Democrat Joe Biden in 2020 came within one vote of succeeding at the court.

Republicans portrayed Protasiewicz as soft on crime and said she would use the court to advance a liberal agenda, regardless of the law.

(Reporting by Joseph Ax in New York and Daniel Trotta in Carlsbad, CaliforniaEditing by Matthew Lewis)

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By Nathan Layne and Rich McKay

PALM BEACH, Florida (Reuters) -A subdued former President Donald Trump lashed out on Tuesday at New York prosecutor Alvin Bragg for bringing criminal charges against him and declared himself the victim of election interference without offering evidence.

“I never thought anything like this could happen in America,” Trump told supporters gathered at his Mar-a-Lago home in Palm Beach, Florida. “The only crime that I’ve committed has been to fearlessly defend our nation against those who seek to destroy it.”

Earlier, Trump pleaded not guilty in a Manhattan court to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, as prosecutors accused him of orchestrating payments to two women before the 2016 election to suppress publication of their sexual encounters with him.

Trump, running for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024, on Tuesday night in Florida gave a relatively short speech, 25 minutes, compared to his rally speeches that can sometimes last two hours.

Despite launching a tirade against prosecutors, he did not call for new protests from his supporters. And while he is expected to return to the campaign trail soon, he gave no details of that.

Trump, 76, reached deep into his well of personal grievances to declare himself hounded by political opponents using the legal system against him to try to stop him from winning back the White House in 2024.

Trump accused Manhattan District Attorney Bragg of being out to get him “before he knew anything about me.” He said the judge in the case, Juan Merchan, is “a Trump-hating judge.” But he did not offer any evidence to support his claim that they were taking their actions in order to undermine his White House bid.

ATTACKS LEGAL CASES

Trump took fresh shots at all the various legal cases against him, from the handling of classified documents that were taken to Mar-a-Lago when Trump moved out of the White House in early 2021, the probe into the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol and the election interference case he is facing in Georgia from the 2020 election.

Trump expressed particular concern about the documents case being investigated by special counsel Jack Smith, who he called a “lunatic” several times.

He said the cases amount to an attempt to thwart his third run for the presidency, calling it “massive election interference at a scale never seen.”

Gathered before him in a gilt-edged ballroom at Mar-a-Lago were a number of combative, diehard Trump backers, including Republican lawmakers Marjorie Taylor Greene and Matt Gaetz, long-time operative Roger Stone, pillow maker Mike Lindell, former U.S. ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell and Trump sons Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump.

Trump’s wife, Melania, was not seen in the ballroom.

SHOW OF SUPPORT

Among the hundreds there was Nathan Mitchell, 18, the incoming president of the Florida Atlantic University’s college Republicans club.

He said he was there to support a man who represents “the best chance that America has to become great again.”

Of the accusations brought against Trump, Mitchell said, “It humiliates us all in front of the world.”

Wearing a black leather biker vest, with a “Born to Ride” patch above the number 45, Alex Gonzalez, 45, who operates a security company in Palm Beach said he was there to show the former president that the people believe in him.

“It’s all a charade, man, it’s all a witch hunt,” Gonzalez said of the indictment. “Trump should not be held above the law – if he does something wrong he should be held liable like anybody else. But this is BS and everybody knows it.”

(Reporting by Nathan Layne and Rich McKay in Palm Beach; Writing by Steve Holland; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Grant McCool)

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By Karen Freifeld and Jody Godoy

NEW YORK (Reuters) -Donald Trump, the ex-president and front-runner for the Republican nomination in 2024, will appear in court on Tuesday to be fingerprinted, photographed and formally charged in a watershed moment ahead of next year’s presidential election.

Indicted last week, Trump is the first sitting or former president to face criminal charges, over a case involving a 2016 hush-money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels. He has said he is innocent and is due to plead not guilty.

Trump, 76, will surrender amid tight security and expected street protests. Police made plans to separate supporters and critics outside the barricaded courthouse, where news outlets had lined up overnight to get access.

Although Trump has drawn tens of thousands of fervent supporters to rallies across the country, it was unclear how many would travel to his heavily Democratic home town, where automobile travel is difficult.

“We have to take back our Country and, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” Trump wrote on social media shortly after arriving in New York from Florida on Monday.

The arraignment, where Trump will be in court to hear charges and have a chance to enter a plea, was planned for 2:15 p.m. (1815 GMT) on Tuesday. “It won’t be a long day in court,” Joseph Tacopina, one of Trump’s lawyers, said on ABC.

The specific charges reached by a grand jury were due to be disclosed on Tuesday. Yahoo News late on Monday said Trump would face 34 felony counts for falsification of business records. Any trial is at least more than a year away, legal experts said.

An indictment, or even a conviction, do not legally prevent Trump from running for president.

Judge Juan Merchan late on Monday ruled that five photographers will be admitted before the arraignment starts to take pictures for several minutes. Trump’s lawyers had urged him to keep them out, arguing they would worsen “an already almost circus-like atmosphere.”

The District Attorney Alvin Bragg, a Democrat, who led the investigation, will give a news conference afterwards. Trump and his allies have portrayed the case as politically motivated.

Trump will return to Florida and deliver remarks from his Mar-a-Lago resort at 8:15 p.m. on Tuesday (0015 GMT on Wednesday), his office said.

‘CONTROL YOURSELVES,’ MAYOR SAYS

Bragg has faced harsh criticism from Trump and his office has received bomb threats in recent weeks. Security officials say they were not aware of credible threats surrounding Trump’s courtroom appearance.

Mayor Eric Adams warned potential rabble-rousers to behave.

“Our message is clear and simple: Control yourselves. New York City is our home, not a playground for your misplaced anger,” he told reporters.

President Joe Biden, a Democrat who is widely expected to seek re-election and face a potential rematch against Trump, said he had faith in the New York police.

The case has divided people in New York, where Trump’s name is emblazoned on buildings related to his business ventures.

“It’s a terrific day. I hope it goes well and that he is eventually found guilty,” said New Jersey resident Robert Hoatson, 71, outside Trump Tower, where Trump stayed on Monday.

Susan Miller said she hoped the show of support would “give him a little strength.”

“He’s honest as the day is long,” she said.

Trump’s lead has widened over rivals in the Republican Party’s presidential nominating contest, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Monday, conducted after news broke that he would face criminal charges.

Some 48% of Republicans say they want Trump to be their party’s presidential nominee, up from 44% last month. Second-place Florida Governor Ron DeSantis fell from 30% to around 19%.

MULTIPLE LEGAL WOES

The Manhattan grand jury that indicted Trump heard evidence about a $130,000 payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in the waning days of the 2016 presidential campaign.

Daniels has said she was paid to keep silent about a sexual encounter she had with Trump at a Lake Tahoe hotel in 2006.

Trump denies a sexual relationship but has acknowledged reimbursing his former personal lawyer Michael Cohen for the payment.

In 2018, Cohen pleaded guilty to federal campaign finance law violations and was sentenced to three years in prison.

He testified in the Manhattan investigation last month.

Trump hired Todd Blanche, a prominent criminal defense lawyer and former federal prosecutor, to join his legal team, two sources said.

Trump also faces a separate criminal probe into whether he unlawfully tried to overturn his 2020 election defeat in the state of Georgia, and investigations by the Justice Department into the election and his handling of classified documents after leaving office.

Trump’s campaign raised $7 million in the three days after word of the indictment emerged last Thursday, according to senior adviser Jason Miller.

Leading potential challengers for the nomination, including DeSantis and Trump’s former vice president Mike Pence, have publicly rallied around Trump in recent days. Only one 2024 rival, former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, has said he should drop out.

(Additional reporting by Julia Harte, Tyler Clifford, Jonathan Allen, Jeenah Moon and David Dee Delgado in New York, Nathan Layne in Connecticut and Doina Chiacu and Richard Cowan in Washington; Writing by Costas Pitas; Editing by Andy Sullivan and Howard Goller)

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By Karen Freifeld and Jody Godoy

NEW YORK (Reuters) -Donald Trump, the former U.S. president and front-runner for the 2024 Republican nomination, will appear in court on Tuesday to be fingerprinted, photographed and formally charged in a watershed moment ahead of next year’s presidential election.

Trump, 76, is the first sitting or former president to face criminal charges. He was indicted by a Manhattan grand jury last week in a case stemming from a 2016 hush-money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels, though the specific charges have yet to be disclosed. Trump has said he is innocent and is due to plead not guilty.

Although Trump has drawn tens of thousands of fervent supporters to rallies across the country, it was unclear how many would travel to his heavily Democratic home town, where automobile travel is difficult.

“Today (Tuesday) is the day that a ruling political party ARRESTS its leading opponent for having committed NO CRIME,” Trump, who flew to New York from Florida on Monday, said in a fundraising email sent out on Tuesday morning.

The arraignment, where Trump will be in court to hear charges and have a chance to enter a plea, was planned for 2:15 p.m. (1815 GMT) on Tuesday and was likely to be brief.

“It won’t be a long day in court,” Joseph Tacopina, one of Trump’s lawyers, said on ABC.

Yahoo News late on Monday reported that Trump would face 34 felony counts for falsification of business records.

Any trial is at least more than a year away, legal experts said.

Being indicted or even convicted does not legally prevent Trump from running for president.

Five photographers will be admitted to the courtroom before the arraignment starts to take pictures for several minutes. Trump’s lawyers had urged a judge to keep them out, arguing they would worsen “an already almost circus-like atmosphere.”

Some Trump supporters and detractors gathered outside the courthouse ahead of the arraignment amid tight security. A video posted on Twitter by a BuzzFeed reporter showed two female Trump supporters, one of them draped in a U.S. flag, tussling with another woman over a large black banner outside the courthouse that read, “TRUMP LIES ALL THE TIME,” before police intervened.

The Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, a Democrat who led the investigation, is set to give a news conference afterward the arraignment. Trump and his allies have portrayed the case as politically motivated.

Trump will return to Florida and deliver remarks from his Mar-a-Lago resort at 8:15 p.m. on Tuesday (0015 GMT on Wednesday), his office said.

‘CONTROL YOURSELVES,’ MAYOR SAYS

Bragg has faced harsh criticism from Trump and his office has received bomb threats in recent weeks. Security officials have said they were not aware of credible threats surrounding Trump’s courtroom appearance.

Mayor Eric Adams warned potential rabble-rousers to behave.

“Our message is clear and simple: Control yourselves. New York City is our home, not a playground for your misplaced anger,” Adams told reporters on Monday.

President Joe Biden, a Democrat who is widely expected to seek re-election and face a potential 2024 rematch against Trump, said he had faith in the New York police.

Trump’s lead has widened over rivals in the Republican Party’s presidential nominating contest, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Monday, conducted after news broke that he would face criminal charges.

Some 48% of Republicans say they want Trump to be their party’s presidential nominee, up from 44% last month. Second-place Florida Governor Ron DeSantis fell from 30% to around 19%.

The case has divided people in New York, where Trump’s name is emblazoned on buildings related to his business ventures.

“It’s a terrific day. I hope it goes well and that he is eventually found guilty,” said New Jersey resident Robert Hoatson, 71, outside Trump Tower, where Trump stayed on Monday.

Susan Miller said she hoped the show of support would “give him a little strength.”

“He’s honest as the day is long,” Miller said.

MULTIPLE LEGAL WOES

The Manhattan grand jury that indicted Trump heard evidence about a $130,000 payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in the waning days of the 2016 presidential campaign. Daniels has said she was paid to keep silent about a sexual encounter she had with Trump at a Lake Tahoe hotel in 2006.

Trump denies a sexual relationship but has acknowledged reimbursing his former personal lawyer Michael Cohen for the payment. In 2018, Cohen pleaded guilty to federal campaign finance law violations and was sentenced to three years in prison. He testified in the Manhattan investigation last month.

Trump hired Todd Blanche, a prominent criminal defense lawyer and former federal prosecutor, to join his legal team, two sources said.

Trump also faces a separate criminal probe into whether he unlawfully tried to overturn his 2020 election defeat in the state of Georgia, and investigations by the Justice Department into the election and his handling of classified documents after leaving office.

Trump’s campaign raised $7 million in the three days after word of the indictment emerged last Thursday, according to senior adviser Jason Miller.

Leading potential challengers for the nomination, including DeSantis and Trump’s former vice president Mike Pence, have publicly rallied around Trump in recent days. Only one 2024 rival, former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, has said Trump should drop out of the race.

(Additional reporting by Julia Harte, Tyler Clifford, Jonathan Allen, Jeenah Moon and David Dee Delgado in New York, Nathan Layne in Connecticut and Doina Chiacu and Richard Cowan in Washington; Writing by Costas Pitas and Alistair Bell; Editing by Will Dunham, Andy Sullivan and Howard Goller)

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(Reuters) – New York prosecutors took a historic step last Thursday by filing criminal charges against Donald Trump, the first time this has happened to a former U.S. president.

The decision by the Manhattan District Attorney to charge Trump for hush money payments to porn star Stormy Daniels, during his 2016 campaign, is just one of the many probes facing the Republican as he makes another run at the White House.

GEORGIA ELECTION TAMPERING PROBE

A prosecutor in the state of Georgia is investigating Trump’s alleged efforts to overturn his 2020 election defeat in that state.

The investigation focuses in part on a phone call Trump made to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, a Republican, on Jan. 2, 2021. Trump asked Raffensperger to “find” enough votes needed to overturn Trump’s election loss in Georgia.

Fani Willis, the Fulton County district attorney and a Democrat who will ultimately decide whether to pursue charges against Trump or anyone else, told a judge on Jan. 24 that a special grand jury had completed its investigation task and that decisions were “imminent.”

Legal experts said Trump may have violated at least three Georgia criminal election laws: conspiracy to commit election fraud, criminal solicitation to commit election fraud and intentional interference with performance of election duties.

Trump could argue that his discussions were constitutionally protected free speech.

U.S. CAPITOL ATTACK

The U.S. Justice Department has investigations under way into both Trump’s actions in the 2020 election and his retention of highly classified documents after departing the White House in 2021.

Both investigations are being overseen by Jack Smith, a war crimes prosecutor and political independent. Trump has accused the FBI, without evidence, of launching the probes as political retribution.

A special House of Representatives committee investigating the deadly Jan. 6, 2021, assault by Trump supporters on the U.S. Capitol urged the Justice Department to charge Trump with corruption of an official proceeding, conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to make a false statement and inciting or aiding an insurrection.

Only the Justice Department can decide whether to charge Trump, who has called the Democratic-led panel’s investigation a politically motivated sham.

MISSING GOVERNMENT RECORDS

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland also appointed Smith to investigate whether Trump improperly retained classified records at his Mar-a-Lago Florida estate after he left office in 2021 and then tried to obstruct a federal investigation.

Garland also appointed former U.S. Attorney Robert Hur to investigate the removal of classified records in President Joe Biden’s possession dating to his time as vice president.

It is unlawful to willfully remove or retain classified material.

In Trump’s case, the FBI seized 13,000 documents from Mar-a-Lago in an Aug. 8 search. About 100 documents were marked classified; some were designated top secret, the highest level of classification.

Trump has accused the Justice Department of engaging in a partisan witch hunt.

NEW YORK ATTORNEY GENERAL CIVIL LAWSUIT

New York Attorney General Letitia James sued Trump and his Trump Organization last September for fraud.

James said her office found more than 200 examples of misleading asset valuations between 2011 and 2021, and that Trump inflated his net worth by billions of dollars.

The attorney general said the scheme was intended to help Trump obtain lower interest rates on loans and better insurance coverage.

She also said her probe uncovered evidence of criminal wrongdoing, and referred it to federal prosecutors and the Internal Revenue Service.

The civil lawsuit seeks to permanently bar Trump and three of his adult children from running companies in New York state, and recoup at least $250 million obtained through fraud.

Trump, a Republican, has called James’ lawsuit a witch hunt, and the defendants have called the claims meritless. James is a Democrat.

A New York judge ordered an independent monitor to oversee the Trump Organization before the scheduled October 2023 trial.

DEFAMATION LAWSUITS

E. Jean Carroll, a former Elle magazine columnist, has filed two lawsuits accusing Trump of defaming her by denying he raped her in New York’s Bergdorf Goodman department store dressing room in late 1995 or early 1996.

Carroll first sued Trump after he told a reporter at the White House in 2019 that he did not know Carroll, that “she’s not my type,” and that she lied to drum up sales for her memoir.

The second lawsuit arose from an October 2022 social media post where Trump called the rape claim a “hoax,” “lie,” “con job” and “complete scam.”

That lawsuit includes a battery claim under New York’s Adult Survivors Act, which gave adults a one-year window to sue their alleged attackers even if statutes of limitations have expired.

Trump and Carroll are awaiting a decision from a Washington, D.C., appeals court on whether, under local law, Trump should be immune from Carroll’s first lawsuit.

The second lawsuit could go to trial on April 25, after a U.S. judge in January called Trump’s bid to dismiss it “absurd.”

(Reporting by Joseph Ax, Luc Cohen, Karen Freifeld, Sarah N. Lynch, Jonathan Stempel and Jacqueline Thomsen; Editing by Howard Goller, Scott Malone and Alistair Bell)

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Former President Donald Trump has widened his lead over his rivals in the 2024 Republican presidential nominating contest, even as he faces criminal charges in New York, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Monday.

Some 48% of self-described Republicans say they want Trump to be their party’s presidential nominee, up from 44% in a March 14-20 poll.

Some 19% back his closest rival, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, down from 30% last month. Other likely rivals polled in the single digits.

The online poll was conducted between March 31 and April 3, after news broke that Trump would face criminal charges related to hush money paid to a porn star before the 2016 election.

Trump is the first U.S. president to face criminal indictment. He is expected to plead not guilty at a Manhattan courthouse on Tuesday.

DeSantis in recent weeks has been buffeted by criticism over a March 13 statement in which he said that it was not a vital U.S. national interest to become “further entangled in a territorial dispute between Ukraine and Russia.”

Trump has stepped up his attacks on DeSantis, who has not formally announced his candidacy but is expected to run.

Some 71% of Americans, including 58% of Republicans, say it is believable that Trump paid porn star Stormy Daniels to keep quiet about an affair ahead of the 2016 presidential election. Trump has proclaimed his innocence and denied the affair, though he has acknowledged paying Daniels.

At the same time, 51% of poll respondents, including 80% of Republicans, said they believed the charges are politically motivated.

Those figures are largely unchanged from last month.

The survey of 706 U.S. adults has a credibility interval, a measure of precision, of plus or minus 2.7 percentage points for all respondents and plus or minus 4.5 percentage points for Republicans.

(Reporting by Richard Cowan; editing by Andy Sullivan and Jonathan Oatis)

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By Steve Holland

FRIDLEY, Minnesota (Reuters) – While the drama over Donald Trump’s arraignment unfolded in New York, President Joe Biden pressed ahead with his official duties, visiting the Midwestern state of Minnesota on Monday to talk about economic issues.

Biden went to Fridley, Minnesota, to discuss infrastructure and manufacturing jobs, tour a factory and tout a new $1 billion investment pledge from engine maker Cummins Inc.

Over 1,000 miles away, New York City was bracing for the arraignment of his predecessor over hush money paid to a porn star before the 2016 election.

Journalists lined the block outside Trump’s Manhattan home, Trump Tower, police erected barricades outside the courtroom where he is to be arraigned, and the local Young Republican Club prepped for a Tuesday rally.

At the Cummins plant, Biden told the crowd that since he took power, more than 12 million jobs have been created. “That’s more jobs in two years than any president has created in four years.”

He also renewed his appeal to raise taxes on billionaires. “It’s just paying your fair share. And it’s cutting subsidies -why are we paying subsidies to the oil companies?”

Biden’s only reference to Trump was when he took credit for reducing the deficit by $1 trillion. “The last guy who had this job, he increased it by $2 trillion,” the president said.

The sharp contrast between what the two potential 2024 presidential rivals – Democrat Biden and Republican Trump – are doing on any given day may become a jarring, in-your-face, split-screen reality for the American political scene for months to come.

While Biden is yet to officially declare he is running for a second four-year term in 2024, his candidacy is all but assured and faces no apparent serious challenge.

Trump announced last November that he is running again, and the hush money case is expected to take at least a year to come to trial. His indictment has proven to be a fillip to his reelection campaign, pulling former fans who were leaning toward Florida Governor Ron DeSantis back into his orbit.

That means the next presidential race, expected to run over $1 billion in advertising and campaigning, could pit two very different visions of older, white, male America: Biden, 80, against Trump, 76. Biden defeated Trump in 2020 after pledging to restore order following his rival’s chaotic four-year term.

Biden, his aides and Democratic strategists plan to say as little as possible about Trump for the time being, and instead will tout the over $1 trillion in new, Democrat-backed federal investment bills passed during his first two years in office. Their core message to voters is to give Biden four more years to “finish the job.”

When Trump visits a lower Manhattan courthouse tomorrow to be fingerprinted and photographed and appear in front of a judge, Biden will meet with his council of science and technology advisers.

Trump is raising money on the back of his indictment, and his campaign credited it with bringing in $4 million in just 24 hours. At one point, he distributed a photo of himself with a baseball bat next to one of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who brought the case.

While New York police say they have seen no credible threats so far, the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection is a fresh memory. On Monday, New York Mayor Eric Adams warned Trump supporters that the city was “not a playground … for your misplaced anger.”

(Reporting by Steve Holland; Additional reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt; Writing by Heather Timmons; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)

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By Karen Freifeld and Rich McKay

NEW YORK/PALM BEACH, Florida (Reuters) – Former U.S. President Donald Trump flew into New York City on his private plane on Monday to face charges stemming from a probe into hush money paid to a porn star, while his lawyers argued against letting cameras in the courtroom.

With New York taking security precautions and the mayor telling potential “rabble-rousers” to behave, Trump was due to surrender at the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office on Tuesday and will likely be fingerprinted prior to appearing before a judge for an arraignment where he will plead not guilty.

Trump, a 76-year-old Republican seeking to regain the presidency in 2024, is the first former U.S. president to face criminal charges.

His plane – painted in red, white and blue with “TRUMP” in big letters on the side and an image of the American flag on the tail – arrived at LaGuardia Airport in Queens after a 3-1/2 hour flight from West Palm Beach near his Florida home.

Clad in a blue suit and wearing a red tie, Trump walked deliberately and alone down a flight of stairs from the airplane and climbed into an SUV for a drive in a motorcade to Trump Tower in Manhattan.

He got out of the vehicle, waved to people behind barricades set up by police for security purposes and walked into Trump Tower while making no public comments.

Beefing up his legal team, Trump hired Todd Blanche, a prominent white-collar criminal defense lawyer and former federal prosecutor, to join his defense, two sources familiar with the matter said. 

Blanche and other Trump lawyers on Monday urged the judge not to allow videography, photography and radio coverage of the arraignment.

In a letter to the court, they argued against allowing such coverage, saying it would “exacerbate an already almost circus-like atmosphere around this case” and “detract from both the dignity and decorum of the proceedings and courtroom.”

Justice Juan Merchan was expected to decide the matter on Monday.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office said it would leave it to the discretion of the judge, but noted that Merchan allowed a limited number of still photos prior to last year’s criminal trial in which Trump’s real estate company was convicted of tax fraud.

The Manhattan grand jury that indicted Trump heard evidence for months this year about a $130,000 payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in the waning days of the 2016 presidential campaign.

Daniels has said she was paid to keep silent about a sexual encounter she had with Trump at a Lake Tahoe hotel in 2006. Trump denies having had any such relationship with her.

Blanche previously represented Paul Manafort, Trump’s 2016 campaign chairman, when Manafort was hit with New York state fraud charges after being sentenced to prison for federal crimes.

The state charges were eventually dismissed and Trump pardoned Manafort before leaving office. Blanche also previously represented Igor Fruman, who was an associate of former Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani.

The specific charges in the indictment by a grand jury convened by Bragg, a Democrat, have yet to be disclosed. Trump has said he is innocent. He and his allies have portrayed the charges as politically motivated.

A motorcade of several vehicles took Trump at midday from his Mar-a-Lago estate to the airport in nearby West Palm Beach. Trump climbed out of an SUV before he and members of his entourage climbed a set of stairs to enter his plane.

“WITCH HUNT, as our once great Country is going to HELL!” Trump posted on social media right before he left Florida.

Trump said on social media he would head to the courthouse on Tuesday morning.

‘OUR COUNTRY HAS FALLEN,’ TRUMP CAMPAIGN ASSERTS

Trump’s campaign raised $7 million in the three days after word of the indictment emerged last Thursday, senior adviser Jason Miller said. The campaign on Monday issued the latest in a series of fundraising emails, taking aim at the media’s reporting on his indictment.

Remarks attributed to Trump in the email stated: “Our country has fallen. But I’m not giving up on America. We can and we will save our nation in 2024.”

A court official said the arraignment was planned for 2:15 p.m. (1815 GMT) on Tuesday. Bragg will give a news conference afterwards. Trump will return to Florida and deliver remarks from Mar-a-Lago at 8:15 p.m. on Tuesday (0015 GMT on Wednesday), his office said.

The New York case is one of several probes Trump faces.

A few dozen Trump fans cheered at the Florida airport and along the route he took to get there, carrying signs and flags.

“Our country needs him,” said Cindy Falco, 65, of Boynton Beach, Florida. “He’s pro-God, pro-family and pro-country.”

Falco predicted exoneration, saying: “Nothing is going to stick to him.”

Trump’s detractors also weighed in.

“Isn’t it ironic that they couldn’t get Donald Trump for all of the crimes he’s committed, except payment to a porn star?” said New Jersey resident Robert Hoatson, 71, outside of Trump Tower. “It always comes down to the lowliest of charges.”

“It’s a terrific day. I hope it goes well and that he is eventually found guilty,” Hoatson added.

But among Republicans, Trump’s lead has widened over rivals in the party’s presidential nominating contest, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Monday, conducted after news broke that Trump would face criminal charges.

Some 48% of self-described Republicans say they want Trump to be their party’s presidential nominee, up from 44% in a March 14-20 poll.

MAYOR CALLS FOR PROTESTERS TO BE ON ‘BEST BEHAVIOR’

New York police over the weekend began erecting barricades near Trump Tower and the Manhattan Criminal Court building. Demonstrations were expected at those sites on Tuesday.

Mayor Eric Adams, a Democrat, said there was no known specific security threat.

“While there may be some rabble-rousers thinking about coming to our city tomorrow (Tuesday), our message is clear and simple: Control yourselves. New York City is our home, not a playground for your misplaced anger,” Adams told reporters.

“As always, we will not allow violence or vandalism of any kind. And if one is caught participating in any act of violence, they will be arrested and held accountable no matter who you are,” Adams added, specifically mentioning Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who has announced plans to protest.

    “Be on your best behavior,” the mayor said.

Asked whether he was worried about unrest around Trump’s arraignment, President Joe Biden, touring a factory in Minnesota, said, “No, I have faith in the New York Police Department.”

(Reporting by Rich McKay in Palm Beach, Florida and Karen Freifeld in New York; Additional reporting by Tim Reid in Henderson, Nevada; Jonathan Allen, Jeenah Moon, and David Dee Delgado in New York, Doina Chiacu in Washington and Costas Pitas in Los Angeles; Writing by Will Dunham; Editing by Howard Goller and Stephen Coates)

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NEW YORK/PALM BEACH, Florida (Reuters) – Former U.S. President Donald Trump flew into New York City on his private plane on Monday to face charges stemming from a probe into hush money paid to a porn star, while his lawyers argued against letting cameras in the courtroom.

With New York taking security precautions and the mayor telling potential rabble-rousers to behave, Trump was due to surrender at the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office on Tuesday and will likely be fingerprinted prior to appearing before a judge for an arraignment where he will plead not guilty.

Trump, a 76-year-old Republican seeking to regain the presidency in 2024, is the first former U.S. president to face criminal charges.

His plane – painted in red, white and blue with “TRUMP” in big letters on the side and an image of the American flag on the tail – arrived at LaGuardia Airport in Queens after a 3-1/2 hour flight from West Palm Beach near his Florida home.

Clad in a blue suit and wearing a red tie, Trump walked deliberately and alone down a flight of stairs from the airplane and climbed into an SUV for a drive in a motorcade to Trump Tower in Manhattan.

He got out of the vehicle, waved to people behind barricades set up by police for security purposes and walked into Trump Tower while making no public comments.

Beefing up his legal team, Trump hired Todd Blanche, a prominent white-collar criminal defense lawyer and former federal prosecutor, to join his defense, two sources familiar with the matter said. Blanche and other Trump lawyers on Monday urged the judge not to allow videography, photography and radio coverage of the arraignment.

In a letter to the court, they argued against allowing such coverage, saying it would “exacerbate an already almost circus-like atmosphere around this case” and “detract from both the dignity and decorum of the proceedings and courtroom.”

Justice Juan Merchan was expected to decide the matter on Monday.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office said it would leave it to the discretion of the judge, but noted that Merchan allowed a limited number of still photos prior to last year’s criminal trial in which Trump’s real estate company was convicted of tax fraud.

The Manhattan grand jury that indicted Trump heard evidence for months this year about a $130,000 payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in the waning days of the 2016 presidential campaign. Daniels has said she was paid to keep silent about a sexual encounter she had with Trump at a Lake Tahoe hotel in 2006. Trump denies having had any such relationship with her.

Blanche previously represented Paul Manafort, Trump’s 2016 campaign chairman, when Manafort was hit with New York state fraud charges after being sentenced to prison for federal crimes. The state charges were eventually dismissed and Trump pardoned Manafort before leaving office. Blanche also previously represented Igor Fruman, who was an associate of former Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani.

The specific charges in the indictment by a grand jury convened by Bragg, a Democrat, have yet to be disclosed. Trump has said he is innocent. He and his allies have portrayed the charges as politically motivated.

A motorcade of several vehicles took Trump at midday from his Mar-a-Lago estate to the airport in nearby West Palm Beach. Trump climbed out of an SUV vehicle before he and members of his entourage climbed a set of stairs to enter his plane.

“WITCH HUNT, as our once great Country is going to HELL!” Trump posted on social media right before he left Florida.

Trump said on social media he would head to the courthouse on Tuesday morning.

‘OUR COUNTRY HAS FALLEN,’ TRUMP CAMPAIGN ASSERTS

Trump’s campaign raised $7 million in the three days after word of the indictment emerged last Thursday, senior adviser Jason Miller said. The campaign on Monday issued the latest in a series of fundraising emails, taking aim at the media’s reporting on his indictment.

Remarks attributed to Trump in the email stated: “Our country has fallen. But I’m not giving up on America. We can and we will save our nation in 2024.”

A court official said the arraignment was planned for 2:15 p.m. (1815 GMT) on Tuesday. Trump then will return to Florida and deliver remarks from Mar-a-Lago at 8:15 p.m. on Tuesday (0015 GMT on Wednesday), his office said.

The New York case is one of several probes Trump faces.

A few dozen Trump fans cheered at the Florida airport and along the route he took to get there, carrying signs and flags.

“Our country needs him,” said Cindy Falco, 65, of Boynton Beach, Florida. “He’s pro-God, pro-family and pro-country.”

Falco predicted exoneration, saying: “Nothing is going to stick to him.”

Trump’s detractors also weighed in.

“Isn’t it ironic that they couldn’t get Donald Trump for all of the crimes he’s committed, except payment to a porn star?” said New Jersey resident Robert Hoatson, 71, outside of Trump Tower. “It always comes down to the lowliest of charges.”

“It’s a terrific day. I hope it goes well and that he is eventually found guilty,” Hoatson added.

MAYOR CALLS FOR PROTESTERS TO BE ON ‘BEST BEHAVIOR’

New York police over the weekend began erecting barricades near Trump Tower and the Manhattan Criminal Court building. Demonstrations were expected at those sites on Tuesday.

Mayor Eric Adams, a Democrat, said there was no known specific security threat.

“While there may be some rabble-rousers thinking about coming to our city tomorrow (Tuesday), our message is clear and simple: Control yourselves. New York City is our home, not a playground for your misplaced anger,” Adams told reporters.

“As always, we will not allow violence or vandalism of any kind. And if one is caught participating in any act of violence, they will be arrested and held accountable no matter who you are,” Adams added, specifically mentioning Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who has announced plans to protest.

“Be on your best behavior,” the mayor said.

Asked whether he was worried about unrest around Trump’s arraignment, President Joe Biden, touring a factory in Minnesota, said, “No, I have faith in the New York Police Department.”

(Reporting by Rich McKay in Palm Beach, Florida and Karen Freifeld in New York; Additional reporting by Tim Reid in Henderson, Nevada; Jonathan Allen, Jeenah Moon, and David Dee Delgado in New York and Doina Chiacu in Washington; Writing by Will Dunham; Editing by Lisa Shumaker and Howard Goller)

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