Gov. Spencer Cox on Trump’s 4th indictment: ‘Serious and deeply concerning’
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Gov. Spencer Cox said the latest charges against former President Donald Trump related to his alleged attempts to overturn the 2020 election results in Georgia are “much more serious and deeply concerning.”
This is the former president’s fourth indictment this year. With the latest set of charges, he and 18 others now face trial in Georgia for their alleged efforts to change the outcome of the election there.
On the federal level, Trump was charged with four counts for his alleged actions leading up to Jan. 6, 2021, and after the 2020 presidential election, and 40 charges in a separate case over his handling of classified documents. In Manhattan, Trump was charged with falsifying business records connected to an investigation into alleged hush money paid prior to the 2016 presidential election.
“There is a presumption of innocence in our country, and that applies to the president of the United States,” said Cox at the Governor’s Monthly News Conference. “I look forward to seeing what happens with these cases.”
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He added: “It is a very dark day for our country, a very sad day, anytime that we have these types of allegations, and anytime we have an indictment of a former president.”
Cox said that of the 91 charges Trump is facing, some are “a mistake and an overreach.”
“Others of them seem appropriate and very serious, but all of them are deeply troubling,” the governor said. “I hope we can find a way through this as a nation.”
When asked whether he thought it was appropriate for Trump to campaign for president in 2024 as he faces so many charges, Cox said, “Ultimately, we the people get to decide.”
“He’s certainly entitled to run. He also happens to be the front-runner right now in the Republican Party,” he said.
FiveThirtyEight’s polling average positions Trump in the lead in the primary, with nearly 54% of GOP voters saying they’d choose him, while Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, the only other candidate with double-digit support, trails behind with 15%.
“I will say that that does trouble me for sure ... less so that he’s deciding to run and more so at the support that he’s getting,” Cox said.
“I like when Republicans win elections. I desperately think we need a Republican president,” he said, adding, “I don’t think that Donald Trump can win the presidency as the Republican nominee ... the polling just shows that his approval rating is so low right now that it would be very hard to change that.”
In a recent Fox News poll, a majority of respondents, roughly 53%, said Trump “did something illegal” to overturn the 2020 election.
The Republican presidential nomination process kicks off in Iowa on Jan. 15, 2024, before it’s Utah’s turn to vote three months later.
“I’m desperately hoping that our good Republican friends in Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada will take a good hard look at some of the many other candidates we have and choose someone else,” he said.
A handful of 2024 GOP presidential hopefuls will face off at the first presidential primary debate on Aug. 23 in Milwaukee. The Republican Presidential Committee has eligibility requirements for candidates, including at least 1% support in polls and a minimum of 40,000 donors.
So far, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, DeSantis, Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum are expected to be in attendance, per CBS News.
Meanwhile, Trump said in a recent interview that he wasn’t willing to comply with the final requirement, which is signing a pledge to support the ultimate Republican nominee. This makes it unlikely for him to appear at the debates.
“I wouldn’t sign the pledge,” Trump told Newsmax. “Why would I sign a pledge if there are people on there that I wouldn’t have?”
Trump and the other defendants in the Georgia case have until Aug. 25 to turn themselves in, a little over a day after the first debate.
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