What does Donald Trump’s indictment mean for his 2024 US Presidential candidacy?
Donald Trump has been indicted on felony charges of illegally retaining classified government documents after leaving office. He is the first former president in US history to face criminal charges by the federal government. The development has potential legal and political implications.
Former US President Donald Trump was indicted on felony charges on Friday for illegally retaining classified government documents after leaving office in 2021. While the businessman is no stranger to legal sanctions, the development makes him the first former president in US history to face criminal charges by the federal government he once oversaw. Supporters however are concerned whether this will affect the Republican leader's chances of leading the country yet again in 2024.
Trump's lawyer said he is charged with seven criminal counts including violations of the Espionage Act, obstruction of justice and conspiracy. None of those would bar Trump from office if he is convicted. He also remains free to campaign - with a trial likely to take place many months from now.
The indictment carries unmistakably grave legal consequences, including the possibility of prison if Trump's convicted. It also has enormous political implications and can potentially upend a Republican presidential primary that Trump had been dominating. GOP votes have however shown no indications of abandoning the former POTUS - indeed Trump's poll numbers rose after his indictment in March in a separate case in New York.
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The senior politician has also used the many cases and charges against him as a fundraising tool. Trump began fundraising off the indictment within minutes of the announcement on Friday. He declared his innocence in a video and repeated his familiar refrain that the investigation is a “witch hunt”.
He also said he was due in court Tuesday afternoon in Miami, where a federal grand jury had been hearing testimony as recently as this week. Previously Trump's campaign had said in April that donations surged after he was indicted in New York.
Can Trump be stopped from becoming President (if he wins the election)?
The US Justice Department has a decades-old policy that a sitting president cannot be prosecuted. The department can deviate from policy in “extraordinary circumstances” with the approval of the US attorney general.
It is unlikely that the prosecution would proceed if Trump won the November 2024 elections. While it would pose extraordinary logistical and security questions, there is also no basis to block his swearing-in as president - even if he is incarcerated.
(With inputs from agencies)
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Business NewsNewsWorldWhat does Donald Trump’s indictment mean for his 2024 US Presidential candidacy?
First Published:9 Jun 2023, 09:18 PM IST
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