Former president and 2024 Republican presidential primary frontrunner Donald Trump will deliver a speech following his arraignment in New York City after a Manhattan jury indicted him on charges related to hush money and campaign finance violations.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg led an investigation into the former president centered around payments Trump reportedly made to porn star Stormy Daniels to prevent details of an alleged 2006 extramarital affair from becoming public.
The indictment marks the first time in U.S. history that a former president has been charged with a crime, touching off a political firestorm and sending the nation into uncharted political waters.
The former president flew into New York on Monday and was expected to stay in his Trump Tower penthouse before reporting to the courthouse Tuesday morning for fingerprinting and a mugshot. He is scheduled to appear before a judge for his arraignment Tuesday afternoon.
There was some early controversy over whether Trump would be handcuffed. Discussions between the Manhattan District Attorney’s office, the Department of Justice, and the Secret Service hashed out the details of the extraordinary arraignment. An agreement that Trump would not be handcuffed was established.
Former President Trump is set to capitalize on the moment, planning an address from his Mar-A-Lago resort home in Palm Beach, Florida. The speech is set to begin at 8:15 EST.
Reactions to the news varied.
Alex Bruesewitz, a prominent communications consultant aligned with Trump and his campaign, told The Dallas Express that the Mar-a-Lago speech is a crucial moment for Trump’s 2024 campaign.
“It’s President Trump’s first chance to address the nation on the political persecution of him and [on] Alvin Bragg’s attack on the America First movement,” Bruesewitz said.
However, Democratic staffer and political podcaster Victor Shi asserted on Twitter that Trump’s Tuesday night speech would be damaging to democracy, and he asked major media outlets not to air the speech.
“Donald Trump just announced he’ll be making a prime time address to the nation after his arraignment on Tuesday. To the media: don’t air it. Don’t allow Donald Trump to take over the narrative. Don’t allow Trump to continue attacking the rule of law & democracy,” Shi tweeted.
The speech will be broadcast live on Right Side Broadcasting Network’s YouTube channel Tuesday at 7:15 p.m. CST.
