New York state Republicans slammed former president Donald Trump’s seven-count federal indictment as yet another Democratic “witch hunt” intended to sway the 2024 election, while Democrats lauded the move as belated justice.
“The Biden Department of Justice’s decision to selectively target a former President and the likely opposition candidate in 2024 is the latest example of Democrats weaponizing our justice system and attempting to influence an election,” Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (NY-11) said on Friday.
“[Democrats] know they cannot win elections based on policy or merit, so they’ve turned to selective prosecution to keep their party in power.”
Trump, 76, announced on Thursday evening that he had been indicted by a federal grand jury on multiple charges related to the mishandling of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago home.
All of the charges – which reportedly include willfully retaining the national defense documents, conspiring to obstruct justice and withholding the documents – stem from the Espionage Act, his lawyer later told CNN.
If convicted on all counts, the former president faces 75 years in prison.
Despite the blow to Trump’s slow-moving 2024 presidential campaign, Malliotakis remained optimistic that the real estate mogul could still come out on top.
“The American people are smart and see right through [Democrats’] political power grabs, just like their two sham impeachments, failed attempts to pack our Supreme Court, radically change our election laws, end the Senate filibuster, and grant non-citizens the right to vote,” she said, referring to Trump’s record two impeachment proceedings before he left office in 2021.
Rep. Elise Stefanik (NY-21) shared Malliotakis’ view that Trump’s indictment was a political hit job designed to detract from President Biden’s own looming corruption scandal.
“The exact same day that the FBI is forced to turn over to Congress absolutely damning and credible allegations regarding Joe Biden’s illegal, egregious, and treasonous corruption, Joe Biden weaponizes his Department of Justice to indict Donald Trump,” she said in a statement.
“The American people are smart and understand this is the epitome of the illegal and unprecedented weaponization of the federal government against Joe Biden’s leading opponent, President Donald J. Trump. The radical Far Left will stop at nothing to interfere with the 2024 election in order to prop up the catastrophic presidency and desperate campaign of Joe Biden.”
Stefanik, who is the fourth most powerful Republican in the House, also melodramatically reasserted her support of Trump’s 2024 bid.
“I am committed to ending the corrupt political weaponization of our federal government, cutting out the rot in these agencies, and holding government officials accountable for their endless illegal witch hunt against President Trump,” she wrote.
“In 2024, we will vote like this country has never seen before and we will elect President Trump back to the White House to Save America.”
Rep. Claudia Tenney (NY-24) shared her own take on the indictment on Twitter.
“Never in American history has the Attorney General indicted a former President and current candidate for President,” she posted shortly after the news broke Thursday night.
“This political decision comes just as House Republicans are revealing a $5 million bribery scheme between Biden and a foreign government.
“It is a dark day for the rule of law in America.”
Rep. Nick LaLota (NY-1) used the Trump indictment as an opportunity to remind the public of former presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton’s emails scandal.
“Every American deserves a fair justice system devoid of any political, racial, or religious motivations,” he said.
“To the contrary, the Biden Justice Department’s indictment of a Former President who is running against Biden, without indictments of a Former Presidential Candidate who knowingly destroyed 30,000 government emails to evade prosecutors, or an indictment of their boss who stored classified material in his Delaware garage, wreaks political retaliation. Our constitutional republic deserves better.”
Former Trump-endorsed New York gubernatorial candidate and congressman Lee Zeldin – who has already backed the 45th president’s third White House bid – also accused the Dept. of Justice of “double standards.”
“The Department of Justice must never weaponize its powers to take out political opponents. The Biden DOJ is doing just that in its prosecution of President Biden’s leading opponent in 2024 who is also a former President of the United States,” he told The Post on Friday.
“The double standards at play here are making everything even worse with the DOJ looking the other way when thousands of documents are found in Joe Biden’s home and elsewhere. I’m old enough to remember Hillary Clinton having a personal server at her home with confidential information that was wiped away when the government came looking for it.
“Just like we saw after Alvin Bragg’s abuse of power a few weeks ago, I expect Trump’s popularity among GOP Primary voters to skyrocket even more due to this political prosecution. Voters, both on the left and right, are seeing right through this blatant weaponization of the DOJ, and this is going to be reflected in the polls.”
Compared to his peers, newly-elected GOP Rep. Anthony D’Esposito (NY-4) remained relatively tight-lipped on the indictment news.
“While our office continues to monitor the situation, [the] Congressman’s focus remains on delivering meaningful tax relief to New Yorkers and fighting for safe streets,” spokesperson Matt Capp told The Post on Friday afternoon.
New York Democrats, however, overwhelmingly supported the indictment.
“It’s clear the law has finally caught up with former President Trump, and as citizens we must respect the judicial process as it plays out,” Gov. Kathy Hochul – who defeated Lee Zeldin last November – told The Post on Friday.
Democratic City Councilman Keith Powers (D-Upper East Side) applauded the stand against Trump’s “unprecedented” behavior.
“Every American has the right to a fair legal process, but the actions of Donald Trump are unprecedented and unpresidential. My former constituents should focus on his legal issues rather than his political aspirations,” he said.
City Councilman and Chair of the Council Finance Committee Justin Brannan agreed, but noted that the indictment left more room for Trump’s rivals in the race for the 2024 GOP nomination.
“I think most people are exhausted by Trump at this point, but his former disciples have simply moved on to candidates who are somehow even scarier. None of this is good for anyone,” he told The Post.
“I think any serious politician and certainly any serious person has already distanced themselves from Trump a long time ago. Undoubtedly another tough day for the ‘lock everyone up and throw away the key’ MAGA crowd. They are really being tested here, but I guess that doesn’t apply to Trump. Rules for thee but not for thee? What a joke.”
The reactions from New York state politicians came after many of Trump’s rivals for the 2024 GOP candidacy offered their own two cents on the scandal.
“We don’t get our news from Trump’s Truth Social account,” Chris Christie wrote on Twitter.
“Let’s see what the facts are when any possible indictment is released. As I have said before, no one is above the law, no matter how much they wish they were. We will have more to say when the facts are revealed.”
Trump is the first former president and presidential frontrunner for a major party to be charged with a federal crime, CNN noted. He was also indicted in April by Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg on charges stemming from hush money payments to Stormy Daniels.
The charges announced on Thursday come after Trump spent over a year trying to keep the Mar-A-Lago documents out of the hands of the National Archives, which owns the materials after he left office, the outlet explained.
A special counsel is investigating the trove of classified documents that was found at Biden’s home, as well.
