Fox News reported on Saturday that Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg may be preparing to indict former President Donald Trump next week on allegations that he paid illegal hush money to adult film star Stormy Daniels.
Forbes magazine noted that the prospect of Trump being arrested has some Republicans threatening action.
"This is a huge development."
Fox News reporting President Trump to be arrested next week and he is expected to be "fingerprinted and processed like every other defendant." pic.twitter.com/hNjsSl8yL8
— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) March 17, 2023
Some members of the GOP took to Twitter where they argued that the former president is being targeted for purely political reasons.
That included House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who promised to investigate whether "federal funds are being used to subvert our democracy."
Here we go again — an outrageous abuse of power by a radical DA who lets violent criminals walk as he pursues political vengeance against President Trump.
I’m directing relevant committees to immediately investigate if federal funds are being used to subvert our democracy by… https://t.co/elpbh7LeWn
— Kevin McCarthy (@SpeakerMcCarthy) March 18, 2023
Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene spoke up as well, accusing Bragg of colluding with the Biden administration to pursue "a fake outdated misdemeanor charge."
Biden’s DOJ is coordinating with the Democrat Manhattan DA to arrest Donald Trump, the top Republican Presidential candidate for 2024, and charge him with a fake outdated misdemeanor charge.
It’s ALL FOR POLITICS!
This is what they do in communists countries to destroy their… https://t.co/ZaoZ9vhgFI
— Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@RepMTG) March 18, 2023
Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz slammed efforts to get Trump as being a "partisan pathetic ploy" and "an absurd abuse of the criminal process in our politics."
Virtually every campaign finance violation involves either 1) spending other people’s money illegally or 2) taking money into your campaign that you shouldn’t.
Trump did neither. He used his own money to resolve a private dispute, irrespective of any campaign.
The impending… https://t.co/ojtyQ0yZvU
— Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) March 18, 2023
Meanwhile, Texas Rep. Chip Roy warned of "a politicized 'justice' system that will be (is being) weaponized against ALL Americans."
The impending indictment of President Trump in NY must be treated as it is: a politically-motivated prosecution based on a strained, convoluted legal theory. It makes clear the danger of a politicized “justice” system that will be (is being) weaponized against ALL Americans. https://t.co/dz8o2mUgJr
— Chip Roy (@chiproytx) March 18, 2023
However, it wasn't just Republicans who sounded alarm bells over the prospect of Trump being indicted, as George Washington University Law School professor Jonathan Turley did so as well.
"One would say Bragg is outside of his lane, but in this case, he's on a completely different highway," Turley told Fox News. "This is an effort by a state official to effectively prosecute a federal crime, a crime that the Department of Justice decided not to prosecute."
