How are Republican presidential candidates handling Trump’s indictment?
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Since former President Donald Trump was indicted in connection with classified documents the Justice Department says he mishandled, Republican presidential candidates have generally settled into one of two reactions: either to defend Trump, or to say the allegations — if true — are serious but the U.S. justice system needs to be reformed.
This criticism of Trump, though in some cases muted, represents a changing attitude among Trump’s competitors when it comes to how to approach him, with his opponents growing more willing to openly challenge him.
Here’s what candidates are saying:
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis
During a speech in North Carolina, DeSantis questioned whether there was a different standard of justice for Republicans vs. Democrats, but said he would have faced consequences if he took classified materials home when he was in the military.
“As a naval officer, if I would have taken classified (documents) to my apartment, I would have been court-martialed in a New York minute,” he said, according to CBS News.
“Is there a different standard for a Democrat secretary of state versus a former Republican president?” he said. “I think there needs to be one standard of justice in this country. Let’s enforce it on everybody and make sure we all know the rules. You can’t have one faction of society weaponizing the power of the state against factions that it doesn’t like and that’s what you see.”
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Former Vice President Mike Pence
Pence told CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” “This indictment contains serious charges and I cannot defend what is alleged.”
“My son’s a marine, my son-in-law is a Navy lieutenant, the very prospect that what is alleged here took place, creating an opportunity where highly sensitive classified material could have fallen into the wrong hands, even inadvertently, that jeopardize our national security that puts at risk the men and women of our armed forces,” Pence said.
He called the handling of classified material “a very serious matter” but also said he cannot believe “that politics didn’t play some role here.” Pence said Trump is “entitled to his day in court.”
“He’s entitled to make his defense,” Pence said. “No one’s above the law and we’re all entitled to the presumption of innocence.”
Former South Carolina Gov. Haley
Haley said “two things can be true at the same time,” arguing the Justice Department and FBI “have lost all credibility with the American people,” and what Trump is accused of doing is serious.
“If this indictment is true, if what it says is actually the case, President Trump was incredibly reckless with our national security,” Haley told Fox News.
Haley brought up her husband Michael, who’s expected to deploy this year as part of the South Carolina Army National Guard, and said it puts him and others who serve in the armed forces at risk.
“I’m a military spouse, my husband’s about to deploy this weekend, this puts all of our military men and women in danger if you are going to talk about what our military is capable of or how we would go about invading or doing something with one of our enemies,” she said. “If that’s the case, it’s reckless, it’s frustrating, and it causes problems.”
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Sen Tim Scott, R-S.C.
Speaking at an event in South Carolina, Scott said, “This case is a serious case with serious allegations, but in America you’re still innocent until proven guilty.”
He claimed there is a “double standard” of justice in the U.S. under Biden that is “both un-American and unacceptable.”
“What I want to focus on is making sure that as president of the United States that I restore confidence and integrity at the Department of Justice so that every single American can have confidence that they will be treated the same, no matter your color, no matter your partisan affiliation,” Scott said.
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie
Christie called the indictment “very tight, very detailed, evidence-laden” and said Trump’s conduct as laid out in the document “is awful.”
“There are people in my own party who are blaming DOJ,” Christie said during a CNN town hall. “How about blame him. He did it. He took documents he wasn’t supposed to take , he kept them when they asked them back for them, he got a grand jury subpoena, he got a grand jury subpoena he refused to comply, they raided his home finally because he refused to comply.”
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Vivek Ramaswamy
The entrepreneur spoke outside the Miami federal courthouse where Trump appeared and said he would pardon Trump and had sent letters to other Republican presidential candidates asking them to agree to pardon Trump, according to ABC News.
Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson
Hutchinson told ABC News he believes prosecutors have a strong case.
“Whenever you look at the specificity that’s laid out in the indictment, it’s a very strong case,” he said. “Obviously this is going to have to be tried, you’ve got to prove all of that, but as (former Trump Attorney General) Bill Barr said, if half of that is proved, then it’s a very devastating case that’s being presented against the former president.”
Hutchinson said he’s pleased more Republicans are speaking out against Trump’s alleged mishandling of documents.
“This is a serious matter both from the criminal justice system but also for selecting the future leader of the country so I’m delighted that more leaders are showing courage,” he said.
