OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
As the potential arrest and indictment of former President Donald Trump inches closer, an email leaked from Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg’s office shows what is on his mind.
“Our law enforcement partners will ensure that any specific or credible threats against the office will be fully investigated and that the proper safeguards are in place so all 1,600 of us have a secure work environment,” the district attorney said in a memo to staff Politico reported.
Here is the full email from Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg to his employees, saying he will not tolerate intimidation after Trump called for protest. Story here: https://t.co/e6fuuYAKpV pic.twitter.com/8X3thHpwmy
— erica orden (@eorden) March 19, 2023
He said that “as with all of our investigations, we will continue to apply the law evenly and fairly, and speak publicly only when appropriate.” He did not mention the former president’s name but referenced “public comments surrounding an ongoing investigation by this office.”
It came after Trump asked for his supporters to protest his arrest.
Former President Donald Trump has responded to the rumors of his arrest, and he is furious.
He posted an all caps message on his TruthSocial platform calling for protests if he is arrested, which he believes will happen on Tuesday.
“NOW ILLEGAL LEAKS FROM A CORRUPT & HIGHLY POLITICAL MANHATTAN DISTRICT ATTORNEYS OFFICE, WHICH HAS ALLOWED NEW RECORDS TO BE SET IN VIOLENT CRIME & WHOSE LEADER IS FUNDED BY GEORGE SOROS, INDICATE THAT, WITH NO CRIME BEING ABLE TO BE PROVEN, & BASED ON AN OLD & FULLY DEBUNKED (BY NUMEROUS OTHER PROSECUTORS!) FAIRYTALE, THE FAR & AWAY LEADING REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE & FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, WILL BE ARRESTED ON TUESDAY OF NEXT WEEK. PROTEST, TAKE OUR NATION BACK!” he said.
What could be an interesting situation in the entire episode is if former President Trump decided to fight extradition from Florida to New York.
In that case, ultimately the person who would have to sign the papers that allow him to be extradited would be Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has not announced his candidacy for President of the United States but who has been polling neck and neck with Trump.
But there is no legal way for Gov. DeSantis to stop the extradition of the former president, Insider reported.
“The indictment and the charges are not going to go away,” Florida attorney Tamara Holder said to Insider. “This is an early stage of a criminal proceeding, and it’s very important that you present yourself to the court early on as somebody who’s going to fight the case and not fight the extradition.”
“The governor doesn’t have the power to stop an extradition,” she said. “The governor’s only involvement is to look at the papers and make sure that the papers are proper to issue the warrant.”
Former Palm Beach prosecutor Dave Aronberg said something similar in an interview with CNN in 2021.
“The governor’s power to stop an extradition is really nonexistent,” he said. “He can try to delay it, he can send it to a committee and do research about it, but his role is really ministerial, and ultimately the state of New York can go to court and get an order to extradite the former president.”
“If there’s a fully voted indictment, they’re not gonna start investigating the underlying facts of the indictment to determine whether it was sufficient or not,” New York attorney Michael Bachner said. “Once there’s an indictment voted, it would be shocking that a judge would not order extradition. Trump knows that.”
Several law enforcement agencies are reportedly preparing for a potential indictment of former President Donald Trump as early as next week, as the Manhattan district attorney’s office “asked for a meeting” with those agencies.
According to Fox News, a court source reported that a meeting was requested on Thursday but has yet to be scheduled. According to the source familiar with the planning, the purpose of the meeting is to “discuss logistics for some time next week, which would mean that they are anticipating an indictment next week.”
In response to the news, a spokesperson for Trump, Steven Cheung, issued a statement to Fox News Digital criticizing the District Attorney Alvin Bragg, calling his investigation a “witch hunt” and alleging that Bragg was under the influence of President Biden and “radical Democrats.”
“President Donald J. Trump is completely innocent, he did nothing wrong, and even the biggest, most Radical Left Democrats are making that clear,” Cheung said. “From Russia, Russia, Russia, to the Mueller Hoax, to Impeachment Hoaxes 1 and 2, and even the Unlawful Mar-a-Lago Raid, Democrats have investigated and attacked President Trump since before he was elected – and they’ve failed every time.
