Trump proclaims his "final battle" after federal indictment
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Trump supporters gathered outside of Mar-a-Lago after he was indicted by Special Counsel Jack Smith. Photo: Scott Olson/Getty Images
A wave of anger is spreading through the GOP after the federal indictment of former President Trump, with online message boards filled with disturbing vitriol and law enforcement on alert ahead of his Tuesday court date in Miami.
Why it matters: Trump is in the "solidarity" phase of his crisis playbook.
- With a thoroughly unique skill of surviving the unsurvivable time and again, Trump's team has developed a plan to repeat during times of trouble.
- One part is solidarity: "Even before all the facts are known, Trump has his allies hit the airwaves to claim that he is innocent or his enemies are corrupt," Axios' Alex Thompson wrote.
What's happening: In his first public appearance since the 37-count indictment over his mishandling of classified documents, Trump framed his legal peril as a collective fight.
- "In the end, they’re not coming after me, they’re coming after you — and I'm just standing in their way," Trump said Saturday at a rally in Georgia.
- "This is the final battle," he added, saying "our people are angry.”
Zoom in: Some of Trump's ultra-MAGA supporters have turned to the online forum "The Donald" to openly fantasize about acts of violence, per Rolling Stone.
- "The Donald" is the same website that helped dream up and promote the deadly Jan. 6th insurrection. It's been kicked off several web servers, including Reddit, for being too extreme and violating various rules.
- “If they steal the election again why are we talking about anything but dragging the political elite out of their homes and setting them on fire?” asked one user named vax_was_a_bioweapon.
Zoom out: In preparation for Trump's Tuesday court appearance, Miami Mayor Francis Suarez said that he will host a special press conference on Monday to talk about safety.
- "We want to make sure that all our citizens know that they're going to be able to express their First Amendment rights, and at the same time we're going to keep them safe, and we're going to make sure that there is no disorder," he said.
What they're saying: Trump's Republican allies on the Hill have been all over the airwaves defending him.
- "If he wants to store material in a box in a bathroom, if he wants to store it in a box on a stage, he can do it," House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) told CNN's Dana Bash.
Most of Trump's 2024 rivals have dismissed the unprecedented charges by attacking the Justice Department.
- Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis tweeted that he would "bring accountability to the DOJ, excise political bias and end weaponization once and for all."
- Businessman and presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy said he will "commit to pardon Trump promptly on January 20, 2025 and to restore the rule of law in our country."
