'We don't have a Republic anymore': Republicans react to Trump indictment; suggest it is an attempt to 'preemptively steal the 2024 election'



Former President Donald Trump revealed Thursday he had been indicted on seven counts in connection with his handling of allegedly classified documents.

Trump's attorney, Jim Trusty, called the charges — which reportedly include false statements, conspiracy to obstruct and a charge under the Espionage Act — "ludicrous."

Trusty confirmed to CNN that the Department of Justice sent a summons letter to the Republican presidential candidate's legal team via email listing the counts and scheduling a Miami federal court appearance for Tuesday afternoon.

Republicans, legal experts, and other keen observers reckon this development is an attempt by the Biden administration and those subject to its influence to sap the Democratic president's top political challenger ahead of the 2024 election.

After all, Biden, no stranger to accusations of mishandling classified documents, could use the help.

Recent Harvard-Harris and Marquette polls indicate Trump has a 5-7 point advantage over the 80-year-old Democrat, who appears to have trouble keeping his footing both in approval polls and on stage.

Republicans respond on a 'dark day'

Republicans circled the wagons Thursday night, certain justice was not the aim with this latest Trump indictment.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) suggested the indictment was the "culmination of what Merrick Garland has been pushing for since he became Attorney General. The weaponization of our Department of Justice against enemies of the Biden admin. will do enormous damage to the rule of law & have a lasting impact."
Cruz told Fox Business on Thursday that Attorney General Merrick Garland "has corrupted the machinery of government. He's the most partisan Attorney General in our nation's history."

While in competition with Trump for the Republican nomination, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis condemned the indictment, writing, "The weaponization of federal law enforcement represents a mortal threat to a free society. We have for years witnessed an uneven application of the law depending upon political affiliation. Why so zealous in pursuing Trump yet so passive about Hillary or Hunter?"

Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) tweeted, "The former president will be indicted for 'mishandling' his own government’s classified info. Yet everyone agrees the president has the authority to declassify anything. This is a moral and constitutional joke. Merrick Garland has disgraced this country."

"Biden is attacking his most likely 2024 opponent," continued Vance. "He’s using the justice system to preemptively steal the 2024 election. This is what’s happening, plain and simple."

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) concurred, stressing that if the Biden DOJ was indeed trying to clear the political field for President Joe Biden with this indictment, the country was in serious trouble.

"If the president in power can just jail his political opponents, which is what Joe Biden is trying to do tonight, we don't have a republic anymore. We don't have the rule of law. We don't have the Constitution," Hawley told Fox News. "No one should be in doubt of what's happening tonight. Joe Biden and his cronies are trying to take out their chief political opponent."

Hawley added, "this has never happened before in American history. ... We are in dangerous, dangerous waters and it is because of Joe Biden."

\u201cHawley: If the president in power can jail his political opponents, which is what Joe Biden is trying to do tonight, we don't have a republic anymore. We don't have the rule of law or constitution.\u201d
— Acyn (@Acyn) 1686277619

Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (Calif.) said Trump's indictment marked a "dark day for the United States of America."

"It is unconscionable for a President to indict the leading candidate opposing him. Joe Biden kept classified documents for decades. I, and every American who believes in the rule of law, stand with President Trump against this grave injustice," wrote McCarthy. "House Republicans will hold this brazen weaponization of power accountable."

Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) noted the curious timing of the indictment: "On the day members of Congress learn from an FBI document linking then VP Joe Biden to receiving $5 MILLION from Burisma in a pay-for-play scheme, Biden’s DOJ announces another phony indictment of the leading candidate for the GOP Presidential nomination, Biden’s likely opponent, and the former POTUS."

Donalds added, "This mob-like justice system is turning Lady Justice on its head and is the most significant threat to our democracy."

TheBlaze previously reported that Trump indicated in a video message that the indictment amounts to "election interference."

"They're doing it to affect the election," said Trump. "They [are] cheating on the election just like the did the last time."

\u201cI AM AN INNOCENT MAN. THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION IS TOTALLY CORRUPT. THIS IS ELECTION INTERFERENCE & A CONTINUATION OF THE GREATEST WITCH HUNT OF ALL TIME. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!\u201d
— Trump War Room (@Trump War Room) 1686269728

Eliminating the competition

Republican lawmakers are not the only ones scratching their heads over the indictment.

Legal expert Alan Dershowitz told Newsmax, "Unless this indictment is the strongest case since [former President] Richard Nixon's obstruction of justice back in the 1970s, this is a disgrace."

"When you have the current administration going after the man who was potentially capable of unseating them, it better be the strongest case imaginable," said Dershowitz. "It better be the case that would get bipartisan support."

Dershowitz stressed that unless Jack Smith, a war crimes prosecutor appointed by Garland to lead the documents probe, has an ironclad case replete with damning evidence, "this is an indictment that never, ever should have been brought," adding that if "President Trump believed that he had declassified the material and that he was entitled to possess them, then it can't be a crime to refuse to turn them over."

Former Trump advisor and "War Room" host Steve Bannon responded to the news, saying, "This whole fantasy about DOJ [being] separate from the administration, the FBI's independent — they're not independent agencies. This is some fantasy that the left has cooked up. ... Merrick Garland is hardwired into the White House. The FBI is hardwired into Merrick Garland. They're rolling against Trump 'cause they can't beat Trump at the ballot box. The most important thing they have to do from their own perspective is demoralize you."

Investigative journalist Matt Taibbi, admittedly no fan of Trump, told NewsNation, "If you're going to take the very extreme step of indicting somebody who is the likely nominee of the opposition party, the charge has to meet two tests: It has to be extremely serious and it has to be an airtight case. And I think both of these cases fail on both of those points."

Stephen Miller, contributing editor at the Spectator, tweeted, "Comey found stripped classified material on a laptop of the husband of Hillary Clinton's closest aide, who didn't have a security clearance & was sexting 15 year olds, and he went like 'Yeah we're not pressing charges here' Everything about the Trump indictment is political."

Byron York, chief political correspondent at the Washington Examiner, underscored that this indictment is not only the first federal charge against a former president, "but it would also be the first time a sitting president's administration has indicted a leading opposition party candidate in the run-up to a presidential election."

Trump's attorney Jim Trusty told NBC's "Today" that the former president's legal team does not anticipate another indictment from the D.C. grand jury empaneled in the classified documents case.

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'You're an absolute jerk!' CNN conservative pundit blasts former Obama adviser who accused him of parroting GOP 'talking points' in heated exchange



CNN conservative pundit Scott Jennings blasted Jim Messina — an adviser to former President Barack Obama — for accusing Jennings of parroting Republican Party "talking points" during a heated exchange Wednesday.

What are the details?

Amid a discussion about GOP midterm gains among Latino voters, Jennings said regarding the Arizona Senate race that polling indicates "[Blake] Masters is close to [Mark] Kelly. I don’t know if he’s gonna win, but it’s a very close..." Yahoo! Entertainment reported.

Messina — who was White House deputy chief of staff for operations under Obama and the former president's 2012 campaign manager — shot back, “Do you want to bet money on that race?” the outlet added.

“Do I want to bet money?” Jennings replied, according to the outlet. “You wanna bet money on the governor’s race?”

Image source: Twitter video screenshot via @Acyn

“You’re just holding the Republican line in everything you’ve said tonight,” Messina told Jennings, the outlet said. “Let’s be in the middle.”

The outlet added that Messina continued accusing Jennings of parroting the GOP line.

"C'mon," Messina said. “Enough with the talking points.”

Jennings had quite enough.

'You're an absolute jerk!'

“I feel like your debate with Karl Rove that you had before you came here — like, your ears are clogged,” Jennings told Messina.

“No,” Messina replied. “I’m just concerned that the RNC gave you the talking points and now you can’t shift.”

“I tell you what, man, do you have a single friend?” Jennings asked Messina sarcastically before getting a tad angry. “You’re an absolute jerk! Unbelievable."

Alisyn Camerota tried to tone things down, hilariously sounding a bit like a teen trying to stop a high school fight: "Guys! Guys! Guys! Stop!"

Jennings just got angrier.

“I’m sorry, I don’t come on here and read talking points! You know me, and you know me, and you,” he said angrily, pointing at Camerota, Laura Coates, and Ana Navarro one by one, the outlet said.

Speaking to Messina, Jennings added that "I don’t even know you, and you come on here and insult me …"

Camerota then held up her hand and pleaded for an end to the "ad-hominem attacks."

"I don’t want to be accused of reading talking points," Jennings added.

\u201c\u201cI tell you what, man, do you have a single friend? An absolute jerk\u201d\u201d
— Acyn (@Acyn) 1666838653

Adam Corolla suggests people only listen to AOC because she's attractive



Comedian and podcaster Adam Carolla just flicked an internet's hornet's nest. During an episode of "Hannity," Carolla suggested the reason Democrats and the rest of us pay so much attention to the sayings and doings of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is largely due to her youthful good looks.

Video:

\u201cIf AOC was fat and in her sixties, would anyone listen to another thing she ever said\u201dpic.twitter.com/jfK0v6VglV
— Acyn (@Acyn) 1643942331

"Here’s a quick thought experiment: If AOC was fat and in her sixties, would anyone listen to another thing she ever said?”

That caused Sean Hannity to throw a metaphorical life preserve to Carolla, saying he wasn't sure he agreed with Carolla's assessment, and argued that yes her ideas were out there (like the Green New Deal), but that AOC has so much influence she was a bit of a de facto leader of the Democrat party, having more power than Nancy Pelosi.

Throwing caution to the wind, Carolla pushed aside the metaphorical life preserve and concluded that he agreed with Hannity, but if AOC "was a middle-aged, heavyset woman, would anyone care what she had to say."

Whether or not Adam Carolla feels the same about Hilary Clinton, that's yet to be seen or heard.

Quick to react since reacting quickly is what it does best, the mobs of Twitter had words. Not all of them are dripping politeness.

Adam Carolla on Hannity proving AOC correct.pic.twitter.com/psukcGb6cM
— Monkey Chunk (@Monkey Chunk) 1643945937
Hannity wanted to say \u201cattractive\u201d and then his whiteness held him back.
— Outspoken\u2122\ufe0f (@Outspoken\u2122\ufe0f) 1643946054


I had words: if Adam Carolla were thin, good-looking and young, he would still be a flaming asshole.https://twitter.com/CheriJacobus/status/1489440283787935751\u00a0\u2026
— Norman Ornstein (@Norman Ornstein) 1643945308


Adam Carolla is an unattractive, unfunny middle aged jerk.https://twitter.com/RonFilipkowski/status/1489432510283096064\u00a0\u2026
— DrDinD \ud83c\udf0a\ud83c\udf0a\ud83c\udf0a\ud83c\udf0a\ud83c\udf0a (@DrDinD \ud83c\udf0a\ud83c\udf0a\ud83c\udf0a\ud83c\udf0a\ud83c\udf0a) 1643952686

Television host Andy Cohen rips Bill de Blasio in drunken rant on CNN's New Year's Eve coverage: 'Sayonara, sucker!'



Popular television and radio host Andy Cohen raised eyebrows on Friday night with what appeared to be a drunken send-off for outgoing New York City mayor Bill de Blasio during CNN's New Year's Eve coverage in Times Square.

After taking a shot on-air with co-host Anderson Cooper, a visibly intoxicated Cohen decided to let loose with his unvarnished thoughts about the unpopular chief executive.

Andy goes off on de Blasiopic.twitter.com/IornnsuG36
— Acyn (@Acyn) 1641013947

"Let me tell you something," Cohen began.

"Tell us something," Cooper encouraged.

Cohen began, "Watching Mayor de Blasio..."

At this point, Cooper, perhaps sensing what was about to occur, attempted to interject, "Oh, don't go on a rant," but Cohen would not be deterred. Leaning into the camera and gesturing for emphasis, Cohen let fly.

"Watching Mayor de Blasio do his victory lap dance after four years of the crappiest job as mayor of New York," Cohen resumed, whereupon Cooper interjected again.

"That's how you want to start the new year?" Cooper asked.

Even more wound up, Cohen marched on, "The only thing Democrats and Republicans can agree on is what a horrible mayor he has been, so, SAYONARA, SUCKER! 2022! It's a new year! 'Cause guess what? I have a feeling I'm going to be standing right here next year, and do you know what I'm gonna be looking at? Dancing as the city comes apart."

A somewhat sheepish Cohen took to Twitter early in the morning to confess that he may have imbibed a little too much booze before going on air. He did not, however, retract or apologize for his comments.

good morning! . Um, I was a bit overserved last night\u2026.
— Andy Cohen (@Andy Cohen) 1641040909

This is not the first time Cohen has unloaded on de Blasio for his management of New York City. Last year, Cohen likewise celebrated his CNN appearance by bashing the mayor, saying, "My God! Do something with this city! Honestly, get it together!"

Fox News' Peter Doocy snubbed in first Biden presser



President Joe Biden did not call on Fox News' Peter Doocy during the president's first press conference, an omission critics noticed given Doocy's proclivity for asking what the president says are "tough questions."

What are the details?

Shortly after the conference ended Thursday, Doocy went live on Fox News and displayed a "binder full of questions" he had prepared for the event. The White House correspondent said that he wanted to ask, in particular, about Biden's plan to "completely transform the economy to make it all green," and to ask about COVID-19.

Fox News’ Peter Doocy has a binder full of questions he didn’t get to ask President Biden today https://t.co/YG7DAigsrm
— Daily Caller (@Daily Caller)1616698938.0

Doocy's name soon began trending on Twitter, with several conservatives criticizing Biden for refusing to take a question from Fox News.

Republican communications firebrand Matt Whitlock said of Biden's move, "PRETTY GLARING to walk up to the podium with an approved list of media to call on -- and leave off Fox News and Peter Doocy."

PRETTY GLARING to walk up to the podium with an approved list of media to call on -- and leave off Fox News and Peter Doocy.
— Matt Whitlock (@Matt Whitlock)1616697000.0

However, The Hill noted, "Fox wasn't the only major news outlet to not get a question: The New York Times also was among those who did not get called on."

Doocy has made a name for himself as a thorn in the side of White House press secretary Jen Psaki, and the two regularly make headlines with their exchanges.

Earlier this year, Biden called on Doocy near the end of a presser and said of the Fox News correspondent, "I know he always asks me tough questions, and he always has an edge to them, but I like him anyway."

Doocy told People magazine that that comment from Biden gave him "a lot of hope."

"It is kind of a relief because it's not like he is saying, 'I am now president, I don't have time to answer your questions anymore,' Doocy told the outlet. "It was like, 'Okay. I know this might not be something I like, but what is it today?' That gives me a lot of hope."

Fox News' Dana Perino said after the Wednesday conference that it was a mistake for Biden to snub Doocy, arguing that it would then make the story about the reporter.

"If I had been there, I definitely would have told the president to call on Peter Doocy," Perino said.

"Peter Doocy is not Jim Acosta," she continued, referring to the CNN White House correspondent who sparred frequently with the Trump administration.

Perino said of Doocy, "He's got good questions, and the president showed he's willing to answer questions from all those other people." She went to say she believes Biden would have been able to answer the questions Doocy said he wanted to ask, before concluding: "Why make Doocy the story?"

“Peter Doocy is not Jim Acosta” https://t.co/vul1apZxze
— Acyn (@Acyn)1616701933.0

Lindsey Graham threatens Democrats: If you call even one witness for impeachment trial, we’ll open up 'Pandora's box'



Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham (S.C.) warned Democratic colleagues Monday night that if they decide to call even one witness in the Senate's upcoming impeachment trial against former President Trump, they'll be opening up "Pandora's Box."

Last month, the Democrat-controlled House voted to impeach Trump a second time for "incitement of insurrection" after a mob of his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 while Congress was in session. The process has now moved to the Senate, where a trial is set to begin next week.

Graham, the outgoing chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, expressed that he looks forward to a speedy trial and acquittal of Trump. But he noted that should Democrats choose to turn it into a "political commercial" and prolong the business for "weeks and months" by calling witnesses, Republicans are prepared to play ball by calling the FBI to testify about security failures at the U.S. Capitol.

"If you open up that can of worms [by calling witnesses], we'll want the FBI to come in and tell us about how people actually pre-planned these attacks and what happened with the security footprint at the Capitol," Graham said.

"You open up Pandora's box if you call one witness," he continued. "I hope we don't call any and we vote and get this trial over next week when it starts."

Lindsey Graham repeats his warning not to call witnesses during the trial. He says if Democrats vote to call a sing… https://t.co/PpWSE4a8qQ
— Acyn Torabi (@Acyn Torabi)1612226807.0

With the trial's Feb. 9 start date looming, Reuters reported Monday that the House Democrats in charge of impeachment proceedings in the Senate are expected to announce whether or not they will call witnesses by as early as Tuesday.

Democrats are expected to face an uphill climb toward a conviction, especially after 45 of the GOP's 50 senators voted in a procedural motion to object to impeachment proceedings last week, leading Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) to call the prospect "dead on arrival." Democrats would need at least 17 GOP senators to declare Trump guilty in order to garner the two-thirds vote required to convict.

Nevertheless, Trump, for his part, is currently assembling a legal defense and preparing a formal response to the charges. A conviction in the Senate will mean rather little, politically, since Trump has already exited office. However, a vote to impeach could open the potential for a vote to bar him from seeking public office in the future.

Watch: Geraldo Rivera and Charlie Kirk spar over whether Trump's election fight should continue



Fox News senior correspondent Geraldo Rivera and Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk argued Monday over whether President Donald Trump should continue his challenges to the presidential election, after the Electoral College officially voted for Democrat Joe Biden as president-elect.

What are the details?

Following the Electoral College vote, Biden called for unity in an address to the nation. Fox News host Martha MacCallum hosted Rivera and Kirk for their reactions, and the two commentators expressed their opposing views on how things look for Trump's prospect at overturning the results.

Rivera delivered what he called a "superficial" criticism of Biden's delivery before saying, "However, he's absolutely right: It is over. I want my friend, the current president, the 45th president to understand it is over. The Electoral College has voted. The longer we drag this out, the more we damage the fabric of our democracy ... and it also damages the legacy of Donald Trump, who should be taking a victory lap right now celebrating the vaccine that he almost single-handedly forced the scientific community to get ready to save millions of lives."

In response, Kirk argued, "If we actually want what's best for the country, you're gonna have to answer some of these questions that 55 to 60 million Americans have, and they're very good questions, such as, why were signature processes changed in Georgia? What exactly happened with people being shut out from voting tabulation process?"

Kirk went on to say that "Joe Biden mentioned in his speech that some of this was discussed in court. Some of these, by the way, are still being played out. There are still plenty of pending legal challenges, there are hundreds..."

"That is so dishonest," Rivera said, stepping in, repeating again, "That is so dishonest," as Kirk asked to finish making his point.

Kirk went on to raise further voting regularity concerns that have been flagged by the Trump campaign, before Rivera pushed back: "For six weeks. We have litigated this for six weeks. Twice the Supreme Court of the United States have rejected it."

He told Kirk, "You have to stop this."

What happened next?

MacCallum then played a montage showing the passion Trump supporters feel in fighting for their voices to be heard.

In reaction, Rivera noted that in the 2000 election, Al Gore conceded with only 500 votes separating him and George Bush during a contested election. He argued that Trump supporters are following Trump's lead in contesting the election against Biden, due to his defiance, saying the president is "instilling in these people the false sense that they have been gypped."

👀 https://t.co/BwAJsQyjaA
— Acyn Torabi (@Acyn Torabi)1607994964.0

Kirk continued to argue, "I believe, for the future of our country and for the goodness of our republic, these questions must be answered or else you're going to have tens of millions of people that will never trust another election again."

The full exchange can be seen in footage shared by The Daily Beast.