Donald Trump entered a plea of not guilty to 4 federal felony charges in connection with accusations that he engaged in a multi-part conspiracy to overturn the will of voters which resulted in a historic attack on the U.S. Capitol.
The judge began sitting after 4 p.m. Eastern time, and the clerk called out: “Twenty-three dash 257, the United States of America vs. Donald J. Trump.” The former President nodded.
“Good afternoon, Mr Trump,” the judge said, moments after Trump’s attorney John Lauro introduced him as “President Trump.”
Maximum sentence of four counts: conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, conspiracy against rights, and obstruction of or attempting to obstruct an official proceeding range from 5 to 20 years and each includes up to $250,000 in fines.
When asked for his plea, Trump responded, “Not guilty.”
Trump’s next hearing is on Aug. 28 before District Judge Tanya S. Chutkan, who will preside over the trial. Upadhyaya relayed to the court that Chutkan intends to set a trial date at the hearing, which Trump does not have to attend.
Lauro pushed for more details from the Justice Department about the scope of the information they would receive before making that filing, saying that the defense needed “all that information, I think, to address when we will be ready.” But he was rebuffed by the judge, who said Trump’s lawyers needed to comply with the order from Chutkan.
Assistant U.S. Atty. Thomas Windom stated that the government was willing to share tonnes of evidence as part of the discovery process as soon as a protective order is in place.
“This case will benefit from normal order, including a speedy trial,” Windom said.
Lauro stated that it would be absurd to think the trial could be done within the time frame of the Speedy Trial Act, which sets time limits for completing the various stages of federal criminal prosecution.
“These are weighty issues; obviously the U.S. has had … years to investigate the matter,” he said.
Before the arraignment, Trump said to supporters on social media that he was on his way to the nation’s capital “TO BE ARRESTED FOR HAVING CHALLENGED A CORRUPT, RIGGED, & STOLEN ELECTION. IT IS A GREAT HONOR, BECAUSE I AM BEING ARRESTED FOR YOU.”
Trump has tried to cast the indictment and his other legal challenges as attempts to interfere with his 2024 presidential election campaign, complaining that he is being forced to spend time and money defending himself rather than campaigning.
“The Dems don’t want to run against me or they would not be doing this unprecedented weaponization of ‘Justice.’ BUT SOON, IN 2024, IT WILL BE OUR TURN,” he posted to Truth Social on Thursday morning.
Speaking to reporters at the airport before he left Washington on Thursday, Trump called it a “sad day for America,” echoing his earlier claims that the case against him is political.
“If you can’t beat him, you persecute him or you prosecute him,” he said.
The indictment alleges that after Trump lost the 2020 election essentially alleges that the former U.S. President made several attempts to scuttle the elections, including putting pressure on officials and using the Justice Department to overturn the election by directing the agency to “conduct sham election crime investigations” and to wield its authority to “falsely” buttress the legitimacy of his schemes.
When Pence refused on the morning of Jan. 6 to comply, the indictment states, Trump took advantage of the violence at the Capitol “by redoubling efforts to levy false claims of election fraud and convince Members of Congress to further delay certification based on those claims.”
The two others, a former Chicago police officer and a former voice actor on the television show “Bob’s Burgers,” are among the more than 1,000 people charged.
7 federal district court judges sat at the back row of the courtroom, including Chief Judge James Boasberg, Amy Berman Jackson and Randolph Moss.
Smith said Tuesday that his team’s “investigation of other individuals continues.
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