Lawmakers quickly react to latest Trump indictment

Lawmakers on Tuesday leapt to comment on the news that former President Donald Trump had received his third indictment — this time on four federal charges relating to his role in the Jan. 6 insurrection and efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.

The majority of responses were divided along party lines, with Democrats using the indictment as an opportunity to slam the former president, who is currently the frontrunner in the 2024 Republican presidential primary. Republicans, on the other hand, argued that the news was evidence of a partisan justice system, suggesting that the indictment was an attempt to unfairly defame Trump and distract from the ongoing legal troubles of President Joe Biden’s son Hunter.

Following a Justice Department investigation led by special counsel Jack Smith, the 45-page indictment charges Trump with four felony counts surrounding the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol, including conspiracy to defraud the United States and obstruction.

“This is nothing more than the latest corrupt chapter in the continued pathetic attempt by the Biden Crime Family and their weaponized Department of Justice to interfere with the 2024 Presidential Election, in which President Trump is the undisputed frontrunner, and leading by substantial margins,” read a statement from the Trump campaign posted to Truth Social on Tuesday.

The statement went on to allege that the timing of the indictment amid the 2024 presidential primary was evidence of “election interference,” and compared legal actions against Trump and his supporters to the dictatorial regime of Nazi Germany.

Republicans primarily used their social media platforms to rally behind the former president on Tuesday. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, that the indictment was a political attempt to direct attention away from recent investigations into the business dealings of President Joe Biden’s son Hunter.

“Everyone in America could see what was going to come next: DOJ’s attempt to distract from the news and attack the frontrunner for the Republican nomination, President Trump,” McCarthy wrote. “House Republicans will continue to uncover the truth about Biden Inc. and the two-tiered system of justice.”

The X account of the Republican-led House Judiciary Committee posted, simply, “Election interference,” echoing the statement of the Trump campaign.

“When you drain the swamp, the swamp fights back,” Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), the chair of the House Judiciary Committee, wrote on X. “President Trump did nothing wrong!”

Some staunch Trump defenders — including Reps. Marjorie Taylor-Greene of Georgia and Matt Gaetz of Florida — called for cutting off money for Smith’s investigation. After news of the indictment broke on Tuesday, Gaetz took to X to promote legislation he introduced on July 19 to defund the probe “following the politicization of and lack of transparency in” the investigation.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is currently polling second behind Trump in the Republican primary, wrote on X that while he had not read the indictment, he hoped to enact changes that would reduce partisanship in the Department of Justice.

“One of the reasons our country is in decline is the politicization of the rule of law,” DeSantis wrote. “No more excuses — I will end the weaponization of the federal government.”

Fellow primary candidate Tim Scott struck a similar tone, telling the Washington Post that he was "concerned about the weaponization of Biden’s DOJ and its immense power used against political opponents." Scott also claimed that Trump and Hunter Biden were being served by "different tracks of justice."

Democrats, meanwhile, expressed their support for the federal grand jury’s decision to indict Trump, condemning his role in the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol.

“No one is above the law — including Donald Trump,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries wrote in a joint statement released Tuesday. “This indictment must now play out through the legal process, without any outside political or ideological interference. We encourage Mr. Trump’s supporters and critics alike to let this case proceed peacefully in court.”

Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who was speaker during the two impeachments of Trump’s presidency, commended Smith’s investigation, stressing the importance of the charges alleged in the indictment playing out “through the legal process, peacefully and without any outside interference.”

Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-Texas) wrote on X: “I’m glad to see that Donald Trump has been indicted for his role in trying to overthrow the results of the 2020 Presidential Election and for stoking the failed coup of January 6, 2021. If he gets away with it others will try the same in the years ahead. The world is watching.”

Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) posted a similar sentiment to her X account, writing that Trump “must be held accountable for conspiring to overturn an election and inciting a violent, fascist insurrection.”

Kelly Garrity and Christine Mui contributed to this report.