OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Arizona Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake sounded off on Tuesday night when asked about former President Donald Trump being indicted by a Manhattan grand jury.
During an event at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate after his court appearance in New York earlier in the day, Lake was asked by a reporter,” What did you make of today’s proceedings in New York?”
“I don’t know if I can say it, it’s just a sh*tshow,” Lake declared.
When asked if she thought the court proceedings could hurt Trump in the 2024 general election, Lake said: “No, not at all. Are you kidding? The guy is raising millions of dollars from people who have never donated one penny to politics. They understand and they recognize bullying when they see it.”
“A lot of these are mama bears. And they recognize bullying. And some of their kids have been bullied. President Trump has been bullied every damn day since he dared to stand up for We The People,” she added.
Lake eventually walked away from the interview and joked that she didn’t have time for the “fake news” any longer.
WATCH:
Our girl @KariLake had a fun run-in with @NBCNews
Here ya go! 😉 pic.twitter.com/f0T5PBbpGC
— Kari Lake War Room (@KariLakeWarRoom) April 5, 2023
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy declared that Congress will take action after Trump appeared in Manhattan on Tuesday for his arraignment in the case brought against him by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.
Trump pleaded not guilty to 34 charges regarding allegations that he falsified business records related to adult film star Stormy Daniels’ hush-money case. Trump was indicted by a Manhattan grand jury in a case involving his purported role in hush money payments to Daniels ahead of the 2016 election, allegedly to keep Daniels quiet about an affair the two of them had in 2006.
McCarthy voiced his frustration and vowed to hold Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg accountable.
“Alvin Bragg is attempting to interfere in our democratic process by invoking federal law to bring politicized charges against President Trump, admittedly using federal funds, while at the same time arguing that the peoples’ representatives in Congress lack jurisdiction to investigate this farce. Not so. Bragg’s weaponization of the federal justice process will be held accountable by Congress,” McCarthy tweeted.
The Manhattan judge presiding over the case against Trump warned the former president on Tuesday to not make statements that could possibly lead to violence. However, the judge did not issue a gag order, which would have limited Trump’s ability to speak about the case.
Judge Juan Merchan said that Trump and other witnesses that prosecutors intend to call should “refrain from making statements likely to incite violence or create civil unrest.”
Trump’s attorney, Todd Blanche, responded in court by arguing that the grand jury process has already been riddled with leaks and that the prosecution’s star witness, Michael Cohen, addressed reporters about his testimony in front of the building where the grand jury met.
Many other Republicans issued strong statements in support of Trump.
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise tweeted: “The sham New York indictment of President Donald Trump is one of the clearest examples of extremist Democrats weaponizing government to attack their political opponents. Outrageous.”
Missouri GOP Sen. Josh Hawley said: “Tonight’s indictment of Donald Trump isn’t about the law. It’s about power. Raw power. It’s the Democrat Party telling the nation they will stop at nothing to control the outcome of the next presidential election. It is an assault on our democracy, pure and simple.”
Nikki Haley, the former South Carolina governor and 2024 GOP presidential candidate, tweeted: “From everything I have seen from this New York district attorney is that this would be something he’d be doing for political points. I think what we know is, when you get into political prosecutions like this, it’s more about revenge than it is about justice.”
Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz responded: “The Democrat Party’s hatred for Donald Trump knows no bounds. The ‘substance’ of this political persecution is utter garbage. This is completely unprecedented and is a catastrophic escalation in the weaponization of the justice system.”
