A member of the so-called “Squad” is taking issue with the treatment former President Donald Trump received during his arraignment.
In a statement, Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) said, “Donald Trump is a twice-impeached, consistently corrupt, and immoral man who has proven time and again that he is unfit for public office. And while his formal indictment for falsifying business records to cover up hush money payments is a step toward much-needed accountability, it remains deeply problematic that his many egregious crimes… have gone unchecked.”
The statement continued:
“Meanwhile, despite his well-documented criminal history, the fact that Trump was brought into a courtroom, arraigned, and allowed to return home in a matter of hour is a slap in the face to millions of Black, brown, and low-income people locked in jails across the country before a trial. This is another example that we have one legal system in America for the rich and powerful, and another for everyone else.”
Finally, it added, “Our system is allowing Trump to monetize his trial and continue to spread lies and incite violence — all while seeking the highest office in America.”
Read the statement below:
Rep. Ayanna Pressley says the treatment of Trump surrounding his arraignment is a "slap in the face to the millions of Black, brown, and low-income people locked in jails across the country before a trial."
— bryan metzger (@metzgov) April 5, 2023
Also says Trump's been allowed to "monetize" the trial. pic.twitter.com/k8ZhZ7G6qD
Trump was arraigned Tuesday in a Manhattan courthouse related to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s investigation into his alleged role in hush money payments ahead of the 2016 election.
He was charged with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. He pleaded not guilty.
The former president then flew back to his home state of Florida and hours later delivered a speech railing against Bragg and the judge and his “Trump-hating” family.
“I never thought anything like this could happen in America … the only crime that I have committed is to fearlessly defend our nation from those who seek to destroy it,” Trump said of his indictment.
He also suggested Bragg “is the criminal” and should be “prosecuted, or at a minimum, he should resign.”
Trump claimed, “Our justice system has become lawless. They’re using it now — in addition to everything else — to win elections … they came up with a new one … they’re looking at me through the Espionage Act … of 1917 where the penalty is death.”
Watch the video below:
Former President Trump: "Our justice system has become lawless. They're using it now –in addition to everything else– to win elections…they came up with a new one…they're looking at me through the Espionage Act…of 1917 where the penalty is death." pic.twitter.com/tHAkN2gFod
— CSPAN (@cspan) April 5, 2023
Judge Juan Merchan set Dec. 4 as the date for the next hearing in Trump’s case.
The date came as prosecutors reportedly pressed for the trial to start in January 2024, shortly before voting in the Republican presidential primary gets underway. Meanwhile, Trump’s team reportedly asked for the trial to start “later in the spring” of 2024.