Several Republican Party tenors have openly criticized Donald Trump, accusing him of endangering US security by storing confidential documents after he left the White House.
Indefensible, not above the law… Several American Republican Party tenors, including candidates for the 2024 presidential election, on Sunday criticized former President Donald Trump after he brought a historic federal indictment in Miami this week.
“I can’t defend” what he’s accused of, said Mike Pence, candidate for the 2024 Republican primary, on NBC against Donald Trump, whose vice president he was.
“I think he should give up”
Donald Trump appeared in federal court in Miami on Tuesday, a first for a former president, for keeping documents top secret after leaving the White House and refusing to return them.
He pleaded not guilty, paving the way for a potentially very damaging trial for his 2024 US presidential campaign.
“I think he should give up the race for the White House,” even former Arkansas governor and Republican primary candidate Asa Hutchinson declared on ABC, considering the allegations “serious and disqualifying.”
Mark Esper, Donald Trump’s defense secretary, put it this way: “If the allegations are true, that they contain information about the security of our nation (…) it could be very damaging to the nation,” he said on CNN. “No one is above the law,” he added, calling the revelations “troubling”.
These comments contrast with those of many Republicans in Congress who have either defended Trump or refused to criticize him.
But some Republican presidential candidates find themselves in a tricky spot, anxious to show their difference from Donald Trump while avoiding angering his loyal base. Mike Pence emphasized that the former president “deserved” his court summons, but declined to speak on the case “until he[Donald Trump, ed.]had an opportunity to present his case in court.” bring to.”