Donald Trump's Fate Could Be Left in Ron DeSantis' Hands
Ron DeSantis has infuriated prominent Trump supporters by saying he will not be "getting involved" in the former president's possible extradition to New York, should the Manhattan District Attorney decide to press charges against him over alleged campaign finance violations.
On March 18, Trump said he would be charged on Tuesday. This, however, did not come to pass. Joe Tacopina, Trump's lawyer, told Newsweek the former president's team is now expecting an indictment to come next week.
Whilst he has yet to formally enter the race, polling suggests DeSantis is the Republican politician best placed to stop Trump from obtaining the GOP's 2024 presidential nomination.
Trump is being investigated over alleged campaign finance violations, related to claims he orchestrated the payment of $130,000 in hush money to Stormy Daniels, a former pornographic actress, to cover up sexual relations she says they had, ahead of the 2016 presidential election.
Speaking to Newsweek, Ambrosio Rodriguez, a Los Angeles criminal defense attorney and former prosecutor at California's Riverside County District Attorney's Office, said it would be "unprecedented" for DeSantis to try and stop any warrant against Trump from being enforced.
He said: "Extradition between states is a pretty simple and common process. We are all citizens of one country. The states, although sovereign, cannot stop a warrant from being executed in another state.
"The only way to legally fight an out-of-state warrant is by showing the person being arrested is the wrong person. Any other issue concerning the warrant gets fought or litigated in the actual state where the warrant originated."
Rodriguez noted that, even if DeSantis tried to block any warrant, he would struggle to do so, as only state police are under his direct control.
He said: "DeSantis, as governor of Florida, has the authority to tell the state troopers what to do and what not to do, but a warrant is executed and enforced in a courthouse, not at the governor's mansion.
"DeSantis could order any state police officer not to apprehend Trump, but the issuance and enforcement of the warrant happen in a court of law, and in this case, local police in Florida could easily carry out the arrest of Trump without any involvement by state troopers."
The attorney concluded that any warrant against Trump would be a "routine process," and said it would be "unprecedented" for DeSantis to "get involved and try to use his power in order to not enforce the warrant within the state of Florida."
Speaking about a possible indictment against Trump on Monday, DeSantis said: "We're not getting involved in it in any way."
Referring to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, he added: "I have no interest in getting involved in some type of manufactured circus by some Soros DA.
"He's trying to do a political spectacle...I've got real issues I've got to deal with here in the state of Florida."
In an apparent swipe at Trump, DeSantis added: "I don't know what goes into paying hush money to a porn star to secure silence over some type of alleged affair."
Trump fired back at DeSantis on his Truth Social site, commenting: "Ron [DeSantis] will probably find out about this sometime in the future when he's unfairly and illegally attacked by a woman (or possibly a man!) with false accusations." This post was later deleted.
Newsweek has contacted Donald Trump for comment via his official website, along with Governor Ron DeSantis by email.
