By Emma Emeozor with agency reports
Embattled former US President, Donald Trump is expected to hand himself over to authorities in New York, today, in connection with a $130,000 (£105,000) pay-out to porn star, Stormy Daniels, with a hearing due to take place in court in Manhattan.
Though the specific charges the ex-president faces are not yet public, observers fear the hearing could turn violent. At press time, reports said some of his supporters, including Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, have made plans to stage a protest today in New York.
Ahead of his court appearance today, Trump has reportedly been meeting with his advisers and legal team to plan his legal defence against criminal charges. According to agency reports, the meeting was held at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort, Florida.
Sources familiar with the case say the former president is being charged with falsifying business records in the first degree, a felony under US law.
Trump’s campaign has already claimed that it raised over $4million (£3.24million) in donations in the 24 hours following the indictment, a quarter of which it said came from first-time donors.
Reuters reports that while Trump leads opinion polls among the current field of Republican candidates, polls suggest he would not win an election against President Joe Biden, were he to run again.
Biden has refused to comment on his predecessor’s indictment. Reuters said when he was asked about the impact that the indictment of Trump would have on America, Biden had an emphatic response: no comment. “I’m not going to talk about Trump’s indictment.”
At the weekend, protesters totalled no more than several dozen people assembled at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, along with a second event held outside a near-by Trump-branded golf course. This was despite earlier calls for protests by Trump ahead of the indictment.
According to BBC, even with the small showing, many Trump supporters at the rallies expressed confidence that Trump would emerge politically unscathed from his legal battles, and go on to win the 2024 presidential election, even if he is convicted.