Trump indictment live updates: New York grand jury votes to charge ex-president after Stormy Daniels hush-money probe
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- Donald TrumpPresident of the United States from 2017 to 2021
- Stormy DanielsAmerican pornographic actress and director
Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury.
The Manhattan DA's investigation was said to have centered on a $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels.
The criminal indictment will not be unsealed until Trump is arraigned next week, sources tell Insider.
Stormy Daniels says orders for 'Team Stormy' merch are 'pouring in' after Trump's indictment
Adult film actress Stormy Daniels said orders are "pouring in" for her merchandise and autographs after former President Donald Trump was indicted on Thursday.
"Thank you to everyone for your support and love! I have so many messages coming in that I can't respond," tweeted Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford. "Also don't want to spill my champagne."
Daniels' tweets about the Trump indictment have been nothing short of jubilant. It's unsurprising considering that since 2018, she has sued Trump, called him a liar, repeatedly poked fun at him, and tussled online with the former president's supporters.
As more signs indicated that Trump would be indicted, the self-described porn star also began promoting her merchandise store, which sells products such as calendars, apparel, and signed photos.
Trump's Truth Social post about respecting the grand jury aged really poorly
Former President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he had "SUCH RESPECT" for the New York grand jury — but he was singing a different tune just one day later, after he got indicted.
In a Truth Social post on Wednesday, before getting indicted, Trump wrote: "I HAVE GAINED SUCH RESPECT FOR THIS GRAND JURY, & PERHAPS EVEN THE GRAND JURY SYSTEM AS A WHOLE."
In a Truth Social post after his indictment, however, Trump seemed to have lost his newfound respect for the jury.
"These Thugs and Radical Left Monsters have just INDICATED the 45th President of the United States of America," Trump wrote on Thursday. "THE USA IS NOW A THIRD WORLD NATION, A NATION IN SERIOUS DECLINE. SO SAD!"
Trump's grip on the GOP is so total that even his 2024 rivals, from DeSantis to Pence, are rallying to his side after the indictment
Current and would-be Republican rivals largely rallied behind Donald Trump on Thursday, illustrating the difficulty the former president's primary foes will face as they try to navigate the fallout from a historic indictment.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Trump's best-positioned potential rival, vowed not to cooperate with any extradition requests Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg may need to get Trump out of Florida. Insider previously reported how DeSantis has little power to thwart such a request as the Constitution requires interstate extradition.
"The weaponization of the legal system to advance a political agenda turns the rule of law on its head," DeSantis, who is expected to announce a presidential campaign in May, said in a statement. "It is un-American."
What we know so far
Reporter Oma Seddiq took a step back to explain what we know so far in the Trump indictment case, including how it may impact his campaign.
DeSantis says Florida won't help extradite Trump
Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida pledged Thursday that state officials would not help extradite former President Donald Trump from Florida to New York in a charged political attack on the prosecutor.
DeSantis in a statement on Twitter accused Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg of "stretching the law to target a political opponent," though he didn't name Trump or Bragg.
Trump is required by law to appear before a judge to address the criminal charges and is expected to voluntarily do so — rendering the extradition question moot for DeSantis, who is expected to enter the GOP presidential race soon where he'll need to siphon support from Trump's base.
Trump faces more than 30 counts related to business fraud: report
Though the exact charges are still sealed, sources tell CNN that Trump faces more than 30 counts as part of the indictment.
Those low-level felony charges will likely relate to the 2016 election-eve hush-money payment to Stormy Daniels. They carry a potential maximum sentence of four years in prison. But a judge could also set a sentence of as little as zero jail plus probation.
Why Biden has to stay quiet
Given the rancor between the current president and his predecessor, Joe Biden may be tempted to celebrate Donald Trump becoming the first former president to get slapped with an indictment.
Biden could certainly high-five First Lady Jill Biden in private. But in public, there are myriad reasons why Democrats hope Biden will play this unprecedented event in about as boring a way as possible.
The indictment will not be unsealed until Trump is arraigned
A source familiar with the case's planning tells Insider that Trump's indictment will be a felony, and will not be unsealed until Trump is arraigned.
The former president is expected to surrender to authorities next week, according to his lawyer Joe Tacopina.
Donald Trump Jr. decries his father's indictment
Trump Jr. took to Rumble, an online video platform, on Thursday to interrupt a scheduled airing of his interview with Joe Kent, a failed 2022 congressional candidate, to rant about the indictment.
In the live segment, Trump Jr. called out Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and painted him as a corrupt prosecutor supported by billionaire George Soros — a false claim that likely stems from the fact that Soros funded a nonprofit called Color of Change which has donated to Bragg. A Soros spokesperson previously told Insider that none of the funds from Soros were specifically earmarked for Bragg.
Trump Jr. also incorrectly stated that the district attorney is indicting Trump. Prosecutors can only bring forward evidence of a particular crime such as witness testimony. A New York grand jury ultimately voted to indict Trump.
Trump Jr. added that the indictment was "weaponized justice at its absolute worst" and gave vague and ominous premonitions that this case represents a "battle for our existence."
Stormy Daniels reacts to Trump's indictment
Adult film star Stormy Daniels offered a two-word response to Thursday's news that a grand jury had voted to indict Donald Trump.
Daniels quote-tweeted a Twitter user arguing that Trump's indictment, which is likely linked to a $130,000 payment to the porn star ahead of the 2016 election, should not be cause for celebration, but should instead be allowed to play out in the justice system.
"Thank you," Daniels wrote.
Here's a timeline that spells out when Trump's marriages started and ended, as well as alleged and confirmed affairs and accusations of sexual misconduct that reportedly occurred during these periods:
Wrongly accused Central Park 5 member cheered Trump's indictment
In 1989, Trump bought newspaper advertisements calling for New York State to adopt the death penalty after an attack on a Central Park jogger.
He made clear that he was speaking out because of the attack, though the ads did not explicitly call for the death penalty for the Central Park 5, the five Black and Latino teenagers who were wrongly convicted of assaulting and raping a White woman in Central Park.
Now that Trump has been indicted in New York, a member of that exonerated group has a concise response: "Karma."
Trump raged about being 'INDICATED' in social media post about his indictment
Former President Donald Trump complained on Thursday about being "indicated" in New York, adding in all caps that "THIS IS AN ATTACK ON OUR COUNTRY THE LIKES OF WHICH HAS NEVER BEEN SEEN BEFORE."
Bragg's office: DA is coordinating with Trump's attorneys for his surrender
A spokesperson for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg confirmed Trump's team was notified of his indictment Thursday evening.
"This evening we contacted Mr. Trump's attorney to coordinate his surrender to the Manhattan D.A.'s Office for arraignment on a Supreme Court indictment, which remains under seal," the spokesperson said. "Guidance will be provided when the arraignment date is selected."
Trump and his aides were caught off guard by his indictment, believing it was weeks away: New York Times
Trump and his aides were caught off guard by news of his indictment, believing the decision wouldn't come for weeks, according to The New York Times' Maggie Haberman.
The former US president is currently at Mar-a-Lago planning his next moves after the New York grand jury's decision to indict him, per the Times. Some advisors had been confident that the vote wouldn't come until the end of April.
Trump's GOP allies rally to his defense, blasting indictment as a 'politically motivated prosecution'
Former President Donald Trump's Republican allies in Congress are rallying to his defense after a Manhattan grand jury on Thursday voted to indict him — the first former president in American history to face criminal charges.
"A majority of Americans know Alvin Bragg's witch hunt is a politically motivated prosecution," Gaetz continued, referring to the Manhattan district attorney. "I continue to stand with President Trump as he has always stood with us."
Trump expected to surrender next week, his lawyer confirms
Trump is expected to surrender to authorities next week, according to his lawyer Joe Tacopina.
A trio of demonstrators outside the Manhattan DA's office unfurled a banner to celebrate Trump's indictment
Michael Cohen, a witness against Trump, says he thinks the former president 'is petrified'
Michael Cohen, Donald Trump's former fixer-turned-nemesis, said in a statement Thursday that "no one is above the law."
He went on to say that he stands by his testimony to the Manhattan DA's office.
Cohen previously pleaded guilty to making a hush-money payment to Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election and was called as a witness before the grand jury that ultimately indicted Trump.
Cohen also told MSNBC he believes Trump is "petrified" and that "this is one of his biggest fears."
Fox News gasps, rallies around Trump as he is indicted
Fox News anchors gasped in the studio as news broke about Trump's indictment.
But some Fox News hosts immediately rallied around Donald Trump on Thursday evening.
"It is the stupidest thing I've ever seen, and I feel bad for the guy," co-host Jesse Watters said during the live taping of "The Five."
As Trump has done previously, other hosts turned their ire on Bragg himself.
"He's such an incompetent boob," host Greg Gutfeld chimed in when another host was discussing how the indicted will now be part of history.
Gutfeld also called the prosecutor "the MAGA Republican of the year," predicting that the charges have now secured Trump the GOP presidential nomination.
Donald Trump becomes the first former president to be criminally charged in US history
Donald Trump is the first former president to ever be criminally charged in US history.
A Manhattan grand jury has indicted Trump, his attorney, Joe Tacopina, confirmed to Insider.
His indictment will likely interfere with his third bid for president in the upcoming 2024 election.
The indictment comes after a years-long investigation by the Manhattan district attorney's office into Trump's business dealings and whether he violated New York state laws when his lawyer paid $130,000 to Stormy Daniels.
Daniels says she and Trump had an affair in the 2000s, and that he and his lawyer, Michael Cohen, paid her to keep quiet during the 2016 election campaign. Cohen took a plea deal with prosecutors and has said that Trump approved of the payment.
Trump has denied that there was ever an affair and said he has done "absolutely nothing wrong," calling the probe politically motivated.
Stormy Daniels made a surprise appearance in Manhattan DA's Trump probe just before the indictment
Adult film star Stormy Daniels met with New York prosecutors last Wednesday over their probe into former President Donald Trump's hush money payment to her in 2016, her lawyer, Clark Brewster, said.
Brewster said Daniels "responded to questions and has agreed to make herself available as a witness, or for further inquiry if needed."
Daniels said she had an affair with Trump in the mid-2000s and that he and former Trump lawyer Micahel Cohen paid her in exchange for her silence during Trump's first presidential campaign.
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