Roger Stone says he’s not guilty and won’t testify against Trump

Longtime Republican strategist and President Trump ally Roger Stone vowed to fight the charges filed against him by special counsel Robert Mueller, saying Friday that he will plead not guilty.

Speaking to media and yelling above chants of “lock him up” from protesters, Stone — who was arrested early Friday morning — said that he would go to trial over the seven charges, including five counts of making false statements.

{mosads}“I am falsely accused of making false statements,” Stone said, after making his first appearance before a federal judge in Florida in the case, adding that he looks “forward to being vindicated.”

And Stone dug in on his previous vow not to testify against Trump, a promise that has earned him praise in the past from the president.

“There is no circumstance whatsoever under which I will bear false witness against the president,” Stone said, “nor will I make up lies to ease the pressure on myself.”

He made the appearance shortly after a federal magistrate judge ordered that Stone be released on a $250,000 signature bond. Stone also said that he will be arraigned in a Washington, D.C., court next week.

Trump associate Roger Stone gave a Nixonian salute after speaking to reporters outside federal court, where he was greeted with both cheers and boos, along with chants of “Lock him up!” https://t.co/mjA5mSCX5C pic.twitter.com/jwumQSuzyN

— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) January 25, 2019

The Trump ally also seized the opportunity to target the FBI and Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

He claimed that the FBI “terrorized” his wife and dogs with the early morning arrest and raid of his home, but also characterized the FBI agents as being exceptionally “courteous.”

And Stone labeled the Mueller probe as being “politically motivated.”

However, he declined to address whether he would or had been cooperating with the special counsel, saying that he will address the issue in court next week.

Stone was greeted with a wave of boos from the crowd as he began to make his remarks, nearly drowning out his comments. Chants of “lock him up” also broke out, a reference to a chant popular among Trump associates and supporters calling for former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to be jailed.

Still, Stone smiled throughout his appearance, telling those gathered, “As I have always said, the only thing worse about being talked about is not being talked about.”

The GOP figure is facing five charges of making false statements, as well as one charge of witness tampering and another for obstruction of an official proceeding.

The majority of those charges stem from Stone’s testimony before the House Intelligence Committee as part of its investigation into Russian election interference, during which he allegedly lied about how and who he communicated with on WikiLeaks.

Updated at 1:12 p.m.