Trump, who plans to make public remarks Tuesday at 8.15 pm (Wednesday, 8.15am, Singapore time) from Florida, denounced the legal proceedings as a “witch hunt” and “political persecution”, and assailed the judge assigned to hear it.
It remains to be seen whether the famously unpredictable Trump will follow the script, or find a way to upend events.
“UP IN THE AIR”
The New York Police Department is on high alert ahead of the extraordinary arraignment, with a potential for street protests by Trump supporters and detractors.
The force has ordered its 36,000 officers to be in uniform and ready to deploy, NBC News reported, citing official sources.
An arraignment is a practiced, established ritual, but there is no roadmap for a former president’s surrender to court authorities.
“It’s all up in the air,” Trump lawyer Joe Tacopina said on CNN Sunday.
While a “perp walk” – in which a defendant is escorted in handcuffs past media cameras – is unlikely for an ex-president under US Secret Service protection, “I anticipate them trying to get every ounce of publicity out of this that they can get,” Tacopina said.
“Hopefully this will be as painless and classy as possible for a situation like this.”
But Trump is girding for battle, Tacopina added.
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