FORMER US PRESIDENT Donald Trump dismissed his indictment for mishandling government secrets as a “heinous abuse of power” as he addressed supporters after pleading not guilty to dozens of criminal felony counts yesterday.
“Today we witnessed the most evil and heinous abuse of power in the history of our country. A very sad thing to watch,” Trump said after returning from his arraignment hearing in Miami to his golf course in Bedminster, New Jersey.
He railed against current president Joe Biden and claimed he had been arrested on “fabricated” charges.
“A corrupt sitting president had his top political opponent arrested on fake and fabricated charge of which he and numerous other presidents would be guilty,” he said.
Trump pleaded not guilty to dozens of criminal counts for mishandling some of the US government’s most sensitive secrets and scheming to prevent their return, in a historic appearance yesterday evening in federal court.
The former US president — and the favorite to fight next year’s election for the Republicans — gave himself up to US Marshals in Miami for a brief hearing that set up the unprecedented scenario of a White House race litigated from the courtroom as well as at the ballot box.
The hearing — just weeks after Trump denied state level financial fraud charges in a separate case in Manhattan — came with the former reality TV star’s mounting legal woes threatening to derail his bid to return to the Oval Office.
The US government accuses Trump of violating the Espionage Act and other laws when he removed classified documents upon leaving office in 2021 and failed to give them up to the National Archives.
Authorities say he conspired to thwart investigators and knowingly shared national security secrets with people who did not have the requisite clearance.
Several hundred Trump supporters greeted him outside the Bedminster golf club, cheering, drinking beer and singing happy birthday to the Republican candidate, who turns 77 today.
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