Indiana political figures react to Trump indictment
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Indiana political figures reacted Thursday night to the indictment for former President Donald Trump on more than 30 counts related to business fraud.
As with everything relating to the 45th president, reaction fell along party lines. Democrats were asking for the legal process to play out while Republicans called the indictment a political move.
Republican U.S. Rep. Jim Banks of Indiana is a close ally of Trump. Banks blasted the indictment on Twitter: “If Donald Trump wasn’t running for President they wouldn’t be prosecuting him.”
Banks added, “This isn’t just an indictment of President Trump, it’s an attempt to intimidate anyone who goes against the Left’s radical regime!”
Whitley Yates, a Republican strategist in Indiana, in talking with News 8 reacted with earlier decisions from the Federal Election Commission and the Department of Justice. “So you had the FEC who decided not to press charges, the DOJ who decided not to press charges.”
Yates also talked about Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, the prosecutor. “The previous prosecutor in Mr. Bragg’s position decided not to. So the real question I have is what has prosecutor Bragg uncovered that the DOJ, the FEC did not.”
Democratic U.S. Rep. Andre Carson of Indiana wrote, “I have always maintained that no one—not even a former president—is above the law. Every American is entitled to due process, and I trust the legal process that resulted in today’s indictment.”
Kip Tew, a former Indiana Democratic Party chair, told News 8, “Well, I think it’s a sad day for the United States of America. It’s the first time a former president of the United States has been indicted. That’s not a good thing for our country in any way, shape or form. I would just hope that supporters of Donald Trump will withhold judgment, wait until all the facts come out.”
Tew says he hopes the indictment chips away at Trump’s support.
Yates says it likely will only make him a martyr.
How do they think this will affect Trump’s 2024 campaign to be president again.
Tew said, “You know, we need to wait to find out what the reaction is going to be. Certainly some of his people will become more ardent supporters. I hope people with open minds will take a look and say, you know, maybe it’s time for the country to move on from Donald Trump because all he is is a drama queen 24/7.”
Yates said, “I’m going to be honest, I see this helping him. I think it’s going to galvanize people from different walks because they’re probably going to feel like, and you’re seeing this sentiment a lot through social media, that they’ve kind of thrown everything at the wall and hoped for it to stick from Russia collusion to Jan. 6 and now this. And the timing of this does seem very peculiar since he has announced that he’s running for president again.”
As a reminder, this indictment is not the probe the former president faces. Federal investigations are still underway concerning his role in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol and efforts to overturn election results in Georgia.