Subdued crowd gathers outside Washington courthouse where Trump was arraigned

Donald Trump arrived with little fanfare on Thursday afternoon to be arraigned for federal charges of attempting to overturn the 2020 election, as a few hundred people with little apparent partisan juice lined the streets waiting for his arrival outside the E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Courthouse in Washington. A small handful of vocal supporters and protesters were also on hand.

While the crowd slowly grew throughout the day, mostly thanks to curious onlookers passing through, as of about 5 p.m. only around a dozen supporters of the former president were outside the courthouse, brandishing Trump 2024 flags, calling for the release of Jan. 6 “political prisoners” and wearing red hats. On the street, a few cars passed by carrying the same banners of support. The large majority of onlookers seemingly had no idea that Trump had arrived shortly after 3 or had left after he was arraigned, and they did not express any support or opposition.

There were about a dozen celebratory counterprotesters as well, playing music and holding signs that read “Lock Him Up,” while others mocked the former president while dressed in their best Trump garb. They also had a mini rock concert later in the afternoon.

One of Trump’s supporters told POLITICO he was not surprised about the low turnout, citing what he perceived as persecution of Trump’s base.

“They have scared Americans — namely Trump supporters — shitless,” said Dion Cini, 54, of New York City, who held a Trump 2024 flag in his hands and said he has traveled the country to support the former president for years. “All the Republicans are just scared right now, and rightly so.”

“I want freedom,” said Michael Symonette, a leader in the Blacks for Trump movement who was flanked by five others. “Trump represents freedom.”

The former president appeared before Magistrate Judge Moxila Upadhyaya around 4:30 p.m. and pleaded not guilty. He had left his golf club in Bedminster, N.J., shortly after 1 p.m., after posting on Truth Social: “IT IS A GREAT HONOR, BECAUSE I AM BEING ARRESTED FOR YOU. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!”

Outside the courthouse, the largest presence by far was the group that Trump has continued to attack as one of his biggest enemies: the press, whose crews and cameras from all different outlets and languages lined by the hundreds around the building. Journalists had begun lining up on Wednesday night to cover the historic moment.

The scene was vastly different from 939 days ago, when thousands of the former president’s supporters had stormed the U.S. Capitol — visible from the front door of the courthouse. Thursday so far was a divergence from the circuslike atmospheres outside of Trump’s earlier arraignments inNew York in April andMiami in June, when hundreds from his base flooded the cities.

Around the Washington courthouse, counterprotesters who were celebrating the indictment played music on speakers and occasionally shouted chants on a bull horn. One popular attraction for passersby and the media was a person dressed up in an inflatable baby Trump costume, mimicking the voice of the former president.

“We’re just here to celebrate our government attempting to prove that democracy is still possible and that we have any intention of holding people accountable,” said Karen Irwin, a 47-year-old from Manhattan who was preparing to tie balloons to a poster she made with the words “Trump Indictment Celebration Tour.”

Irwin said she showed up to “celebrate” the previous arraignments in New York and Miami, and was looking forward to a potential future court date in Atlanta.

A couple dozen police officers from various federal agencies were stationed around the building, having set off a street perimeter on surrounding blocks. In the afternoon, a few officers showed up on horses to help monitor the crowd.

While handfuls of tourists filtered in and out to take in the courthouse scene and capture photos, the bigger attraction seemed to be across the street, where people were steadily flowing into one of the city’s trademark art museums. A slightly sunny morning turned overcast as the day passed, and a few small patches of rain fell.

Special counsel Jack Smith on Tuesdaycharged Trump with with four felony counts, including conspiracy to defraud the United States and conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, spurring from his alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election and to exploit the violent mob that attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

The charges present the greatestlegal challenge yet to the former president, who already faces 34 New York state felony charges in connection to alleged hush money payments to a porn star and 40 potential federal felonies from the alleged mishandling of classified documents. He is also under investigation for alleged interference in Georgia during the 2020 election.

Despite the Trump base’s continued support, often premised on the unfounded accusation that his legal challenges were politically motivated, few were present to show up for him as of Thursday afternoon. Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy was briefly at the courthouse,recording a message of support for Trump, but appeared to have left the court grounds by lunchtime.

The subdued scene was fitting for a quiet August day in the capital, a time when Congress — and, along with it, some of Trump’s biggest banner carriers — is out on recess.

President Joe Biden was also out of town, taking a vacation back home in Delaware. While on a bike ride Thursday morning, Biden smiled but did not respond to a reporter who asked about the impending court proceedings in Washington, according to a pool report.