Trump tries to rally Republicans after historic impeachment

Donald Trump was defiant in his first public appearance since being convicted on 37 criminal counts related to the handling of classified documents, telling an audience of Republicans that the allegations were “ridiculous and baseless.”

Speaking at an event in Georgia organized by the state’s Republican convention, Trump said the impeachment “will go down in the history of our country as one of the most horrific abuses of power”. The former president is seeking to drum up support for his third bid for the White House ahead of a possible matchup with Joe Biden for the 2024 presidential election under a cloud of legal problems.

Trump said, “Biden is trying to put his main political opponent in jail — an opponent who is beating him in the polls, just like they do in Stalinist Russia or Communist China.”

The former president has been accused of breaking seven different federal laws. The charges unearthed on Friday include 31 counts involving violations of the Espionage Act, specifically knowingly retaining national defense information without authorization. He is also facing charges of conspiracy to obstruct justice and making false statements.

The federal case is linked to documents seized by agents from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate during an August raid. The former president has already deposited more than 15 boxes of classified documents, some of which were labeled ‘top secret’. The materials found in his Florida home were located in a ballroom, his bedroom, and a bathroom and shower, among other places. Trump is due to appear before a judge in Miami, Florida, on Tuesday.

The charges, unsealed by the Justice Department following an investigation by a special counsel, are the latest legal blow for Trump, who remains the Republican frontrunner for the 2024 election.

The former president boasted on Saturday that the impeachment had boosted his polling numbers “way up” and that fundraising was “through the roof.”

“We are beating the hell out of Joe Biden. That’s why they’re doing it,” Trump said. “If I hadn’t been there, there would have been no witch hunt, no prosecution.”

With this indictment, Trump is the first former president to face federal criminal charges. He is also the first former president to be indicted in a state court in a criminal case and now faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges brought by the Manhattan District Attorney.

He could face a third impeachment this summer related to his efforts to reverse his 2020 election loss in Georgia. On Saturday he defended his actions, saying that he “has every right, in my opinion, to complain about election rigging in Georgia”.

The former president is also embroiled in a slew of civil legal actions, including allegations that he, his children and the Trump Organization repeatedly lied to lenders and insurers about property valuations. In May, Trump was also ordered by a Manhattan jury to pay $5 million in damages related to a sexual assault and defamation civil suit brought by author E. Jean Carroll.

However, Trump is not the only one facing scrutiny over his handling of government documents. The DoJ has launched a second special counsel to investigate material found in Biden’s residential garage in Delaware and his former private office in Washington. Trump’s former vice president, Mike Pence, who is also seeking the Republican nomination, was also investigated but not charged.

On Saturday, Trump reiterated his claim that taking the documents was not a criminal act because of the Presidential Records Act, a law that determines who controls documents and other records from the presidency. The act states that official presidential records are owned by the US, not the president, and must be kept in a federal depository.