Former President Trump on Friday was defiant in his first speech since being arraigned on federal criminal charges related to his efforts to overturn the 2020 election, claiming his legal troubles only helped to boost his 2024 reelection campaign.
“Any time they file an indictment, we go way up in the polls,” Trump said during a Republican Party dinner in Montgomery, Ala. “We need one more indictment to close out this election. One more indictment, and this election is closed out.”
“Nobody has even a chance,” he added.
His remarks come just one day after he was arraigned on four charges alleging that he attempted to orchestrate a plan to use fake electoral college votes to overturn the results of the 2020 election. He pleaded not guilty.
The former president shook off the charges, saying they were driven by political forces and insulted Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith, who has handled two federal cases against him. Trump was also indicted in June on charges related to the mishandling of classified documents after he left the White House.
“Despite the demented prosecution of our movement by our corrupt and highly partisan department of injustice, and deranged Jack Smith — Doesn’t he look deranged? You see the picture with the purple robe? He’s a deranged human being — we’re getting stronger by the day,” Trump said.
“Somebody said you should treat him nicer, maybe he’d be nicer. Let me tell you, this guy is a lost soul. Bad guy,” he added. “Don’t get nicer. He’s a deranged, sick person.”
The charges are urged on by the Biden administration, Trump alleged, in an effort to help Biden win the 2024 election.
“The fact is that it’s not fair and it’s probably not legal what they’re doing,” he argued. “They want to interfere in my campaign.”
“They want to interfere in the elections, a commonly used tactic in third world countries,” Trump continued. “That’s where this tactic comes from, third world, fourth world, fifth world countries, and they’re taking it to a level that our country has never seen.”
The former president is also facing a New York state indictment over a hush money payment he allegedly made to an adult film star and a potential fourth indictment stemming from a Georgia investigation into attempts to overturn the 2020 election.
He has a strong lead in GOP primary polls, with national polling averages showing the former president with about 53 percent support, far ahead of his nearest rival Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.