‘Campaign of Dishonesty, Fraud’: Key Takeaways, Reactions from Donald Trump’s Indictment

Former US President Donald Trump was indicted on Tuesday for attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 Presidential Elections. This is the most serious legal threat the Republican party’s frontrunner is facing as he mounts a campaign to return to the White House.

This is the third criminal indictment the 77-year-old former president has been handed since March. The recent indictment charges him with three counts of conspiracy and one count of obstruction.

He is already scheduled to go on trial in Florida in May 2024 for allegedly mishandling top secret and classified government documents.

Tuesday’s charges, two of which carry maximum sentences of 20 years in prison, will cause headaches for his campaign team as this means the GOP frontrunner could be embroiled in more legal proceedings amid a bitter and divisive presidential campaign.

Here Are The Key Takeaways And Reactions to The Indictment:

1. A Washington grand jury indicted Trump for his efforts to unlawfully remain in power after losing the 2020 election. Jack Smith, the special counsel, in the indictment said the former president kickstarted a campaign to block the transfer of power and charged him with conspiracy to defraud the US and other crimes, the Hill said in a report.
2. Trump reacted to the indictment with a post on social media platform Truth Social where he said that the indictment was brought with an intent to damage him politically amid his campaign.
3. “Why didn’t they bring this ridiculous case 2.5 years ago? They wanted it right in the middle of my campaign, that’s why!” Trump said, comparing his case with political persecution faced dissidents in Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union.
4. The indictment highlights every move Trump made and every part of Trump’s plan to remain in power. It also shows a state-by-state breakdown of efforts by Trump to overturn the results in the states he lost and also his outreach to Justice Department officials and Mike Pence to pressure them, the Hill.
5. “Bottom line—won every state by 100,000s of votes. We won every state,” the indictment showed Pence making these notes based on what Trump said to him. There were also plans to to craft fake election certificates by Trump and his co-conspirators.
6. Six co-conspirators named: Rudy Giuliani, the former mayor of New York City; John Eastman; Sidney Powell; Jeffrey Clark; Kenneth Chesebro; Co-Conspirator 6 (name not revealed).
7. Florida governor Ron DeSantis reacted without naming his competitor on Tuesday to Trump’s indictment. “One of the reasons our country is in decline is the politicisation of the rule of law. No more excuses—I will end the weaponization of the federal government,” DeSantis was quoted as saying by the Hill.
8. Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy said he is suing the US Justice Department and will file a fresh records request about the recent indictments of Donald Trump.
9. US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said the indictment is an attempt by the US Justice Department to distract the nation from the probes launched against the Bidens. “Everyone in America could see what was going to come next: DOJ’s attempt to distract from the news and attack the frontrunner for the Republican nomination, President Trump,” McCarthy said.
10. “Anyone who puts himself over the Constitution should never be President of the United States,” Mike Pence, former vice president under Trump administration, said.
11. The White House on Tuesday maintained silence on Trump’s historic indictment.