WASHINGTON- A grand jury in New York voted Impeaching Donald Trump, both former president and current GOP presidential nominee, his actual and potential 2024 Republican rivals walked a fine line and criticized the Manhattan District Attorney, though many of them consider a run against the ex-commander in chief.
From Nikki Haley, the former South Carolina governor who announced her presidential bid earlier this year, to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has not yet announced whether he is running for president but is second to Trump in multiple polls Has taken place, potential GOP president Competitors have focused theirs Response to former President’s impeachment about Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.
President Joe Biden’s White House declined to comment on Trump’s impeachment. While Biden has not officially announced his re-election bid, the president has said he intends to run in the 2024 presidential election.
Here’s what the hopefuls and possible contenders of 2024 said about Trump’s impeachment:
Live Updates: Grand jury indicts Donald Trump in New York, first criminal indictment of a former president
Nikki Haley says charges are about ‘revenge’ rather than ‘justice’
Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, In an interview with Fox News, Bragg, who announced she would run for president in February, said there were “political issues” in Bragg’s case and that he was trying to “get revenge” on the former president.
“What we do know is that political persecutions like this are more about revenge than justice,” she said. “I think the country would be better off talking about things that matter to the American public than just sitting there and dealing with a vendetta from some politicians in New York.”
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DeSantis: Florida will not support extradition for indictment
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a possible 2024 GOP hopeful, in a statement on Twitter criticized the indictment as “un-American” and said Florida would not support an extradition request for Trump.
Trump is currently staying at his Mar-a-Lago resort, which is based in Palm Beach, Florida.
“Arming the legal system to promote a political agenda turns the rule of law on its head,” he said. “It’s un-American.”
Trump indictment: What does that mean? Here’s what we know about the process
Former Arkansas Gov. Hutchinson says Trump should have a “presumption of innocence.”
Former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, who is considering a GOP presidential bid in the 2024 election, said in a statement that Trump should have a “presumption of innocence.”
“It’s a dark day for America when a former president faces criminal charges,” Hutchinson said. “We must wait for the facts and for our American justice system to work as it works for thousands of Americans every day.”
Trump has already announced that he will run for the GOP nominee in the 2024 presidential election. Hutchinson said the decision on the next president should be made “at the ballot box, not in the court system.”
“Donald Trump shouldn’t be the next president, but voters should decide that,” Hutchinson said.
Opinion poll: Voters have mixed feelings about Trump as the 2024 presidential race comes into focus
Virginia Gov. Youngkin: The left is trying to “arm” the justice system.
Glenn Youngkin, Gov. of Virginia, wrote in a tweet that Bragg impeached Trump “for sheer political gain.”
“The artificial arrest of a presidential candidate should not happen in America,” Youngkin said. “The continued attempts by the left to weaponize our justice system is eroding people’s trust in the American justice system and it must stop.”
Mike Pompeo says DA undermines trust in the American legal system
Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tweeted Thursday that Bragg is “undermining America’s confidence in our legal system.”
“The prosecution of serious crimes protects Americans, but political prosecution puts the American legal system at risk of being viewed as a vehicle for abuse. DA Bragg – Spend taxpayers’ money and your energies protecting law-abiding citizens. Don’t play politics,” he tweeted.
Pence: Trump charges ‘an outrage’
Former Vice President Mike Pence, who is also considering running for president, has criticized his former boss’s indictment.
“The unprecedented indictment of a former President of the United States over a campaign finance issue is an outrage,” Pence said in an interview with CNN.
“To millions of Americans, it seems like nothing more than political persecution,” Pence added.
Reach out to Rebecca Morin on Twitter @RebeccaMorin_
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump impeachment: 2024 presidential candidates criticize New York prosecutors
Source : news.yahoo.com