Donald Trump announced his appearance in Atlanta on Thursday, launching a new legal and media sequence that risks overshadowing the first debate between his Republican rivals on Wednesday evening.
Surrounded by investigations, the former Republican president is expected in the US state of Georgia, where he will soon be tried alongside 18 co-defendants for trying to reverse the result of the 2020 presidential election in this state. -key to the southeast of the country.
As with each of his charges, the announcement of this new twist came from the principal concerned, from his Truth Social network on Monday evening: “I will be going to Atlanta, Georgia, on Thursday to be ARRESTED by an EXTREME LEFT prosecutor “, he wrote.
A few hours earlier, his lawyers had agreed to pay $ 200,000 bail, allowing him not to be placed in pre-trial detention, provided he did not violate any law.
In practice, Mr. Trump will therefore be formally placed under arrest while remaining free, and the authorities of this American state should take his mugshot, a shot with a potentially infamous effect for the candidate.
Another step commented on in a tone of bitter irony by Donald Trump:
“I guess they thought I was likely to abscond – then I’d fly away, maybe to Russia, where I’d share a golden suite with Vladimir, and never be seen again. never again“, he launched in the night from Monday to Tuesday.
This legal saga, dissected and commented on in great detail by the entire American press, once again shines the spotlight on the billionaire, candidate for the White House, rather than on his rivals.
Starting with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, or former Vice President Mike Pence, who hoped to take advantage of the first debate between Republican contenders to relaunch their campaign.
But this show, organized Wednesday at 8:00 p.m. in Wisconsin (01:00 GMT Thursday), and which Donald Trump has decided to snub, also risks being relegated to the background.
Donald Trump boasts daily about his lead over the other contenders for the Republican nomination — a gap that has only grown since his first indictment in the spring, captured by televisions around the world.
Far from harming the former president, his legal setbacks are currently bringing in millions of dollars in donations from his supporters who claim, like him, that the ex-real estate magnate is the victim of a “hunt to witches”.
The winner of the Republican primaries will face the Democratic nominee, most likely Joe Biden, on November 5, 2024.
The American president, candidate for his re-election, is careful not to comment on the legal troubles of Donald Trump, anxious not to fuel his accusations of instrumentalization of justice.
This does not prevent the leader from accelerating the tempo of his campaign, flooding the country with election advertisements extolling the merits of his economic policy. Cost of this operation? The staggering amount of $25 million.
08/22/2023 17:50:53 – Atlanta (United States) (AFP) – © 2023 AFP
