As New York City prepared for a potential indictment of Donald Trump over an alleged hush-money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels during his 2016 campaign, workers built barricades around a courthouse in Manhattan on Monday.
It would be the first time a U.S. president had ever been charged with a crime. On social media on Saturday, Trump pushed his followers to resist what he claimed was his impending arrest.
Trump warned law police in his call for protests that his supporters might use violence akin to the attack on the Washington, D.C., U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Yet many far-right grassroots organizations have decided not to follow his call out of fear of falling into a trap, according to security specialists.
Trump’s bid for a comeback could be hampered by an indictment
Charges could be filed this week by a grand jury that heard additional testimony on Monday. Trump, who is running for president again in 2024 on the GOP ticket, had predicted he would be detained on Tuesday.
Attorney Robert Costello, a witness who testified before the grand jury on Monday, claimed that Michael Cohen, Trump’s longtime fixer, had handled the hush-money payments independently of the president.
“Michael Cohen decided on his own – that’s what he told us – on his own, to see if he could take care of this,” Costello told reporters after testifying to the grand jury at Trump’s lawyer’s request.
Cohen, who appeared before the grand jury twice, stated that Trump gave him the order to pay the bills on Trump’s behalf.
Trump’s bid for a comeback could be hampered by an indictment.
Trump has refuted claims that any such affairs occurred
The Manhattan District Attorney’s probe is one of many legal issues that Trump is dealing with. An inquiry for comment was not immediately answered by his office.
In 2018, Cohen entered a guilty plea to charges of violating federal campaign finance laws related to his role in setting up payments to Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, and another woman in exchange for their silence regarding encounters they allegedly had with Trump.
Trump has refuted claims that any such affairs occurred.
According to Cohen’s attorney Lanny Davis, the Manhattan District Attorney’s office had requested that Cohen be available as a rebuttal witness, but he was informed on Monday afternoon that his testimony was not required. On Wednesday, Cohen told MSNBC that he had not been asked to come back.
Trump indictment: No sign of unrest
Eric Adams, the mayor of New York, told reporters that police were keeping a watch on social media and looking out for “inappropriate actions” around the city. There are no known credible threats, according to the New York Police Department.
If accused, Trump would probably need to travel from his home in Florida for processing, including getting his fingerprints taken. Several media sites claimed that law enforcement authorities gathered on Monday to go over the logistics.
Republicans who support Trump have harshly blasted the investigation as being politically motivated.