Newly charged Trump basks in limelight to lure donors for 2024 US presidential election
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Within days, Trump raised US$10 million (S$13.31 million), according to his campaign.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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WASHINGTON - Most politicians would see criminal charges as career-ending. Not Donald Trump.
The former president is seizing on his indictment by a New York grand jury
Since news of his prosecution broke, Trump has blasted supporters with e-mail fund-raising solicitations and posted a personal video appeal asserting that his opponents “only attack me because I fight for you”.
Within days, he raised US$10 million (S$13.31 million), according to his campaign.
Trump’s campaign is also trying to enlist donors who have supported his chief Republican rival, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, by presenting the former president’s rising poll numbers as an unstoppable force in the GOP race.
GOP strategist Alex Conant said Trump’s indictment may overshadow other Republicans’ ability to fund-raise, including Mr DeSantis, at least in the short term.
“This indictment guarantees that he will be the centre of the story for the foreseeable future,” said Mr Conant, who has worked on presidential campaigns, including Florida Senator Marco Rubio’s 2016 bid.
Cable networks spent the week covering all of the minutiae of Trump’s arrest and arraignment, down to the movement of his motorcade through Manhattan and the arrival and departure of his plane, branded “Trump Force One”.
Networks broke into prime-time coverage to carry his remarks from his Mar-a-Lago resort upon his return to Florida.
But it remains to be seen whether he can sustain the injection of fresh energy, which came just as it appeared many in the party wanted to move on.
Trump was at a low point politically after being widely blamed for the GOP’s disappointing 2022 midterm results, compounded by a lacklustre launch of his third White House bid.
While he faces serious legal jeopardy from the 34 felony charges unveiled by the Manhattan District Attorney’s office on Tuesday – as well as from other state and federal investigations of his conduct – the prosecution’s case marked a political inflection point, prompting Republicans to once again rally behind him.
Even Mr DeSantis – who has not yet formally declared he is running for president – and Republican critics like US Senator Mitt Romney of Utah criticised the prosecution as political.
“The indictment freezes in place the Republican field for now, and blunts any negative impact on Trump in terms of getting the nomination again,” said Dr Marty Cohen, a professor of political science at James Madison University. “There is a conscious need from his rivals to not inflame his base.”
Trump’s campaign is highlighting sentiments of support from more than 110 state and federal GOP officials, and – according to one ally – is working behind the scenes to secure more endorsements from lawmakers whom Trump has supported in the past.
On Thursday, US Representative Byron Donalds of Florida, whom Trump backed for re-election in 2022, endorsed him as the leader who “can seize the moment and deliver what we need”.
Early polling suggests the indictment has boosted Trump’s standing in the GOP.
His lead over Mr DeSantis in the RealClearPolitics average of polls increased to 50.8 per cent to 24.6 per cent on Tuesday, from 45.7 per cent to 28.9 per cent the day before news of the indictment broke.
A CNN poll conducted after the indictment showed that while 60 per cent of Americans and 62 per cent of independents approve of the charges, 79 per cent of Republicans disapprove.
A Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted on Wednesday and Thursday, following Tuesday’s indictment, found that 49 per cent of all Americans think it was right for prosecutors to pursue the first criminal case against a US president or former president.
But the finding underscores the political divide on so many matters revolving around Trump.
Around 84 per cent of self-described Democrats said the charges were merited, while only 16 per cent of Republicans agreed.
Around 40 per cent of Republicans said the case made them more likely to vote for Trump in 2024, while 12 per cent said it made them less likely to support him.
Another 38 per cent said it had no impact.
Trump leads the field for the Republican nomination by a wide margin, with 58 per cent of Republicans saying he is their preferred nominee. That is up from 48 per cent in a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Monday.
Mr DeSantis came in second at 21 per cent.
The response to Trump’s indictment may put pressure on Mr DeSantis and others to officially join the race “to claw back some of that very shiny limelight that Trump is basking in”, said Dr Wendy Schiller, a political science professor at Brown University who served on the staffs of former US senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan and New York governor Mario Cuomo.
In Iowa, the former political director of the state party, Mr Craig Robinson, said a number of Republicans were ready to vote for a candidate other than Trump, but the indictment drew them back towards him.
“Everyone on the Republican side thinks this is politically motivated,” Mr Robinson said. “A month ago, Ron DeSantis had all of the momentum, but he has stalled now in a sense. When you are running against Trump and everything that means, you can’t afford to stall out.”
Trump’s legal woes could still hurt his campaign, especially if they mount.
Officials in Georgia are weighing an indictment over Trump’s attempts to interfere with the state’s counting of ballots
Trump will also be forced to take time away from his campaign to help with his legal defence and possibly attend hearings or a trial in New York, a potential distraction.
“He thinks that is good news for him. It is not,” Mr Chris Christie, a former New Jersey governor, federal prosecutor and 2016 presidential candidate who is considering his own White House bid, said in an interview.
Trump’s critics say the charges could also further alienate the independent and suburban voters he would need to win in a general election, adding to the sense among Republicans that it would be better to nominate an alternative.
“The last three cycles have been dominated by Trump and have been terrible for the party,” said Mr Mike DuHaime, the top strategist for Mr Christie’s campaigns. “What is getting better by being indicted?” BLOOMBERG, REUTERS
