‘The Only Crime That I’ve Committed Is to Fiercely Defend Our Nation,’ Trump Says After Arraignment

Former President Donald Trump gave a speech at his estate, Mar-a-Lago, in Palm Beach, following his arraignment on 34-count felony charges brought by New York prosecutors. Trump pleaded not guilty and stated that he fiercely defended our nation and committed no crimes. The charges relate to the allegation that Michael Cohen, former Trump attorney, paid adult film actress Stormy Daniels $130,000 to keep her from going public about an alleged affair she had with Trump, who denies this. New York prosecutors allege that Trump directed Cohen to pay Daniels and then illegally disguised this payment of a monthly retainer for legal services—a violation of state and federal election laws. However, Trump maintained his innocence, calling it “an insult to our country.”

Trump also drew attention to the numerous other investigations aimed at him, including the Mar-a-Lago raid by the FBI in 2022, and the civil lawsuit by New York Attorney General Letitia James aimed at Trump and his family. Trump argued that he could disprove her allegations that his financial records were falsified.

In his speech, Trump urged that the legal system should not be weaponized against political opponents, and referred to the suppression of the Hunter Biden laptop story prior to the 2020 presidential election, saying that it could have made a difference in that race. He accused New York District Attorney (NYDA) Bragg of being a “criminal” and that the world was laughing at us. Furthermore, Trump described Juan Merchan, the judge in his current case, as a “Trump-hating judge” who previously worked on Vice President Kamala Harris’ 2020 presidential campaign.

Republican analysts say that indicting a former president sets Trump up as a martyr, and this case may represent a turning point in the country where the legal system can’t be weaponized against political opponents.

Trump emphasized American decline and described the current government as radical left lunatics who want to interfere with our elections by using law enforcement. He says the nation is in decline and vows to fight back against these unwarranted allegations.