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(Trends Wide) — Key House Republican leaders lined up to defend former President Donald Trump on Thursday following news that Trump was indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, a sign of the powerful hold Trump still has over his party on Capitol Hill.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy tweeted that “the American people will not stand for this injustice,” while criticizing Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. “The House of Representatives will hold Alvin Bragg and his unprecedented abuse of power to account,” he said.
The number two Republican in the House — Majority Leader Steve Scalise — called it “outrageous.” In a tweet, Scalise qualified the accusation of “one of the clearest examples of extremist Democrats using the government as a weapon to attack their political opponents.”
Rep. Elise Stefanik, chairwoman of the House Republican conference, issued a statement calling the impeachment “a political witch hunt” and a “dark day for America.”
The response from top congressional Republicans came as the impeachment against Trump was filed under seal and will be announced in the coming days. The charges are not publicly known at this time, a source told Trends Wide.
Trump called key allies on Capitol Hill Thursday night to shore up support for his impeachment, including members of the House Republican Party leadership and lawmakers serving on committees trying to investigate the state attorney’s office. borough of Manhattan, according to a senior GOP source familiar with the talks.
In the phone calls, which the source described as “check-ins,” Trump told allies he plans to fight the charges and continued to lash out at the impeachment and Bragg.
News of the impeachment broke just hours after Capitol Hill lawmakers left for a two-week Easter break. The halls of the Capitol were quiet. On social media, the Republicans were much louder.
Just minutes after the indictment was made public, some of his staunchest supporters on Capitol Hill rushed to his defense.
“Outrageous,” House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan tweeted.
“BREAKING NEWS: Trump has been impeached! This is yet another political witch hunt targeting the president of the people,” Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert tweeted.
“President Donald Trump always fought for us. He puts the American people before corrupt interests. For that reason alone, the powerful will never stop coming after him,” Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida tweeted.
“President Donald J. Trump has just been indicted by an extremist New York prosecutor. No President of the United States has ever been criminally charged. Trump Delusion Syndrome has infiltrated our judicial system and if they can come for it him, they can come for anyone,” rep. Andy Biggs tweeted.
A handful of senators were quick to jump in too to criticize the Manhattan district attorney.
“This prosecution fails the smell test,” Senator Thom Tillis said in a statement. “The Department of Justice has already investigated the facts and decided there was no case against President Trump. This is the same district attorney who is notorious for letting violent criminals out of jail in Manhattan, but has been laser-focused on pursue a politicized prosecution of a former president”.
One moderate Republican held back from immediately attacking Bragg or the impeachment, a stark departure from many of his colleagues.
“I trust the system,” Rep. Don Bacon told Trends Wide. “We have a judge. We have juries. There are appeals. I think justice will eventually be served. If he’s guilty, it will be proven. But if not, I think it will be proven as well.”
Even before an impeachment, three Republican leaders, including Jordan, Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer; and that of the House Administration Commission, Bryan Steil; they sent a letter requesting Bragg’s testimony and information related to his investigation. Bragg’s office objected, but congressional Republicans have doubled down.
