« You’ve got to work hard to make President Trump a martyr, » Rep. Nancy Mace said, adding the indictment « managed to do just that. »
Former President Donald Trump has long framed himself as a victim being unfairly targeted by the establishment, and his recent indictment could provide more fodder for him and his allies to cling to.
The indictment was unveiled Tuesday, revealing the former president was being charged on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in connection to a $130,000 hush-money payment that was made to the adult-film actress Stormy Daniels. Trump has denied the affair and being involved in the payment.
But former prosecutors told Insider the indictment was underwhelming, noting Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg did not specify exactly what underlying crime Trump allegedly committed that would’ve justified the bumping the charges up to felony status.
They also said the 34 counts could be viewed as excessive — and even give Trump and his team fuel to argue he was being unfairly targeted.
« Trump enjoys being the victim in all this, and that’s what he’s going to lean into, » Joshua Ritter, a former Los Angeles County prosecutor and partner with El Dabe Ritter Trial Lawyers, told Insider. « It begins to look like you’re piling on when you charge it this way. »
Ritter said there was nothing improper or illegal about charging Trump on each individual document, but that it’s not a universally common practice.
