DeSantis says no fair trial for Trump in DC after election interference indictment

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis pledged to “end the weaponization of government” and allow Americans charged with crimes in Washington, D.C. to stand trial in different jurisdictions as former President Donald Trump was indicted on Tuesday for his role in interfering with the 2020 presidential election.

In a tweet posted just minutes after news of Trump’s indictment broke, DeSantis dodged the question of whether the 2020 election was “rigged,” as Trump has repeatedly alleged, but broadly accused jurors in D.C. of an ingrained bias that deprived Americans facing charges in the district of a fair trial.

“Washington, DC is a ‘swamp’ and it is unfair to have to stand trial before a jury that is reflective of the swamp mentality,” wrote DeSantis, a former three-term U.S. representative. “One of the reasons our country is in decline is the politicization of the rule of law. No more excuses — I will end the weaponization of the federal government.”

Trump was indicted on federal criminal charges on Tuesday related to his role in trying to stir distrust and obstruct the certification of the results of the 2020 presidential election.

The indictment has been expected for days. Trump announced in mid-July that he had been informed by Special Counsel Jack Smith that he was the target of an ongoing investigation into the efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

Trump, who has held tight to the claim that the election was rigged against him, has accused the Justice Department of “prosecutorial misconduct” and spread the idea that he’s the victim of a political “witch hunt” by liberal government officials who are trying to shut down his 2024 White House bid.

President Joe Biden defeated Trump in the November 2020 election by about 4.5 percentage points nationally, or 74 electoral votes. Trump refused to concede the race following his loss, claiming without evidence that widespread voter fraud and electoral malfeasance skewed the results and that he was the rightful winner.

His weeks-long campaign to remain in the Oval Office reached a fever pitch on Jan. 6, 2021, when a mob of Trump’s supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol as members of Congress were certifying the results of the 2020 election.

DeSantis, who is competing with Trump for the GOP’s 2024 presidential nomination, has walked a fine line in the debate over the 2020 election. He’s acknowledged Biden as the president, but has been reluctant to take a stance on Trump’s allegations of a rigged election.

He’s repeatedly accused prosecutors and government officials of unfairly targeting conservatives and has said that while Trump could have done more to quell the Jan. 6 riot, the former president’s conduct doesn’t necessarily rise to the level of a criminal offense.

The election inference case isn’t the only legal trouble for Trump. He was charged earlier this year in Manhattan for his role in an alleged hush-money scheme. He was also indicted in June on charges related to his retention and handling of classified government documents after he left the White House.