Donald Trump speaks at Trump National Golf Club in New Jersey after his court appearance.Credit:AP
He made a pit stop at the Cuban restaurant Versailles,where he offered to buy food for everyone and posed for photos with adoring customers.
And he ended the day with a feisty speech and a fundraising blitz,portraying himself as a victim of political persecution by a corrupt administration.
“This is called election interference and yet another attempt to rig and steal a presidential election,” he said,of the Justice Department’s indictment against himover his handling of classified documents. “They ought to drop this case immediately because they’re destroying the country.”
But Trump’s showmanship belies the significance of what played out on the 13th floor of the US District Court of Florida on Wednesday morning Australian time.
Never before has a former US president been charged with a federal crime,let alone a former US president who is currently the overwhelming frontrunner to be the Republican candidate in the 2024 election.
After years of avoiding accountability and shattering norms,Trump now faces a legal reckoning that could end up in an explosive trial and potential jail time. As his own former attorney-general Bill Barr said this week:“If even half of it is true,then he’s toast.”