The MAGA leader insists his case is 'a persecution of a political opponent' because he's leading by 'very, very substantial numbers' in the race to Oval Office.
- Aug 3, 2023
AceShowbiz - Donald Trump has insisted he's being "persecuted" after he pled not guilty to conspiring to overturn the 2020 election. The former US president, 77, was charged for a record third time on Tuesday, August 1 and on Thursday at Reagan National Airport following his face-off with Magistrate Judge Moxila Upadhyaya in Washington - who he stared down during his arraignment before declaring his innocence - he gave a short speech in which he blasted the "filth" and "decay" of Washington D.C..
"This is a very sad day for America and it was also very sad driving through Washington D.C. and seeing the filth and the decay and all of the broken buildings and walls and the graffiti," he said at the airport, where he grasped a huge black umbrella brandished with his surname.
"This is not the place that I left. When you look at what's happening, this is a persecution of a political opponent. This was never supposed to happen in America. This is the persecution of the person that's leading by very, very substantial numbers in the Republican primary and leading Biden by a lot. So if you can't beat him, you persecute them or you prosecute him. We can't let this happen in America."
Trump earlier faced the federal judge as she read out the four charges against him related to the January 6 Capitol riot and his plot to stay in power - which carry a combined maximum sentence of 55 years in prison if he's found guilty.
She set the next hearing for August 28 while Trumps' lawyer outside court said the case was a bid to ruin his 2024 campaign. When asked to state his age in court, Trump - dressed in a navy blue suit and red tie - fumbled his words and replied, "Seven-seven. 77."
Judge Upadhyaya asked if he had taken any medications or anything that would make him unable to respond, and he insisted, "No, I have not."
The former "The Apprentice" judge was flanked at a table on either side by his attorneys, John Lauro and Todd Blanche, and he stood up, stared down the judge and entered his not guilty plea.
Trump will be released on the condition that he does not communicate with witnesses in the case.
The scandal-plagued former leader is now facing four counts in connection to his involvement in the events of January 6, 2021, including conspiracy to defraud the American government and obstruct the electoral count for trying to overturn the 2020 election.
A 45-page indictment states the former "Apprentice" judge was "determined to remain in power" despite having "lost" his leadership.
The sealed indictment was delivered to a Washington D.C.-based judge on Tuesday containing the four felony counts against the former president. The indictment papers also references six unnamed and unindicted co-conspirators.
It says, "The Defendant and co-conspirators used knowingly false claims of election fraud to get state legislators and election officials to subvert the legitimate election results and change electoral votes for the Defendant's opponent, Joseph R. Biden, Jr., to electoral votes for the Defendant."
Trump railed against the news of his third indictment in six months on his Truth Social platform - branding the investigating US attorney in the case Jack Smith "deranged."
Trump has denied his involvement in the events of 6 January that saw his supporters storm the Capitol Building in Washington D.C., leaving five people dead and others injured.
Trump is also currently facing federal charges in Florida stemming from his mishandling of classified docs after he left office.
He made history in April when he became the first US president to be charged with a crime after leaving office, when the Manhattan district attorney's office indicted him on charges related to hush money payments he made prior to the 2016 election.
