Donald Trump has outlined his travel plans ahead of his looming indictment, confirming on Sunday night that he will leave Mar-A-Lago, his Florida home, on Monday and make his way to Trump Tower in New York.
The next morning, the former president says he will appear at a Manhattan courthouse, where he is expected to be arraigned, fingerprinted, and photographed after a grand jury decided to indict him for his role in a hush-money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels.
Trump took to Truth Social Sunday night to confirm his travel plans, writing: “I will be leaving Mar-a-Lago on Monday at 12 noon, heading to Trump Tower in New York. On Tuesday morning I will be going to, believe it or not, the Courthouse. America was not supposed to be this way!”
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Trump lawyer Joe Tacopina, who has been doing the rounds across various media over the weekend, earlier told CNN’s State of the Union program that “all the Tuesday stuff is still very much up in the air, other than the fact that we will very loudly and proudly say, ‘Not guilty.’ Hopefully this will be as painless and classy as possible for a situation like this.”
Tacopina told CNN his team still has yet to see the indictment, which remains under seal.
“We will take the indictment. We will dissect it. The team will look at every, every potential issue that we will be able to challenge and we will challenge, and of course I very much anticipate a motion to dismiss coming because there’s no law that fits this.”
Tacopina described Trump as “gearing up for a battle” and “a tough guy, someone who’s ready for this fight,” on Sunday to ABC’s This Week with George Stephanopoulos.
In a subsequent follow-up post Sunday night, Trump stepped up his attacks on Manhattan prosecutor Alvin Bragg. The note appears to confirm earlier reports that Trump had told advisers he was planning to “escalate” attacks against Bragg, the DA who revived the Stormy Daniels case.
“The Corrupt D.A. has no case,” Trump wrote, while claiming he continues to be a victim in the investigation.
He continued: “What he does have is a venue where it is IMPOSSIBLE for me to get a Fair Trial (it must be changed!), and a Trump Hating Judge, hand selected by the Soros backed D.A. (he must be changed!). Also has the DOJ working in the D.A.’s Office - Unprecedented!”
Speaking to NBC News’ Meet the Press on Sunday, the former Manhattan district attorney who began the initial investigation into Trump, Cyrus Vance Jr., warned the former president about furthering the criticism against Bragg.
“I’ve got to say that I was disturbed to hear the former president speak in the way he spoke about the district attorney, [Alvin] Bragg, and even the trial court in the past week," Vance said.
“And I think if I were his lawyer—and believe me, no one has called up to ask for my advice—I would be mindful of not committing some other criminal offense like obstruction of governmental administration, which is interfering with or by threat or otherwise the operation of government.”
After his arraignment Tuesday, Trump plans to deliver a speech back at Mar-a-Lago at 8:15 p.m. local time.
Hours earlier, Trump issued a plea to supporters on Truth Social on pleading for campaign money ahead of the 2024 presidential race—while also bragging that he can’t be bought.
“We are now officially a Third World country,” Trump says in the video, echoing comments he made in 2020 after losing the election.
“It’s very simple. They can’t buy me and they can’t control me and that scares them beyond belief,” he continues.
Trump then asks for contributions—but makes sure to note that his supporters are exempt if they’re “doing poorly because of Biden’s disastrous policies.”
A grand jury voted to indict Trump on Thursday over his role in the hush-money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels— marking the first time a former American president faces serious criminal charges.
