 Campaign Report |
Campaign Report |
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Trump's arraignment shakes up 2024 race |
Former President Trump is set to appear in court in Miami this afternoon after federal prosecutors alleged last week that he mishandled classified documents when he left the White House. |
© Win McNamee/Getty Images |
Trump is facing 37 counts – 31 of which relate to the Espionage Act – in the Justice Department's probe looking into the former president's handling of classified documents that were found at Mar-a-Lago. The federal indictment against a former president marks a first in American history and comes amid a burgeoning 2024 GOP presidential race. What's in the indictment?: The indictment alleges that the former president kept classified documents pertaining to some of the country's military and national security secrets at his Mar-a-Lago residence and that he "endeavored to obstruct the FBI and grand jury investigations and conceal his continued retention of classified documents." Though some of the GOP presidential contenders have lashed out at the Justice Department and FBI in light of the Trump indictment, some of them have started to offer stark criticism of Trump should the indictment hold true. What they're saying: "If this indictment is true, if what it says is actually the case, President Trump was incredibly reckless with our national security," former U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley said during part of her interview on Fox News on Monday. "It is a very tight, very detailed, evidence-laden indictment, and the conduct in there is awful," former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a prominent Trump critic, said during a CNN town hall in New York on Monday. The indictment underscores the tricky political dance Trump's rivals will have to do as they look to vocally criticize federal officials going after a Republican while also being wary to not overly defend the former president, their chief challenger and front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination. The Hill's Niall Stanage also has a good preview on what to watch for ahead of Trump's arraignment, including whether Trump makes any remarks around the event and if any high-profile Republicans appear in-person to support the former president. |
Welcome to The Hill's Campaign Report, I'm Caroline Vakil. Each week we track the key stories you need to know to stay ahead of the 2024 election and who will set the agenda in Washington. |
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Key election stories and other recent campaign coverage: |
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Former House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) said the indictment of former President Trump on federal charges last week will make him unelectable in 2024 if he wins the GOP’s primary election. “If we nominate anybody not named Donald Trump, we're going to beat Joe Biden,” Ryan said Tuesday during an appearance on CBS This Morning, noting the former president had plenty of “baggage” before last week’s … |
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Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy is pushing 2024 White House contenders to commit to pardoning former President Trump if he is convicted on federal charges over his handling of classified documents. Ramaswamy, a biotech entrepreneur and long shot GOP presidential hopeful, became one of the first candidates to openly pledge to pardon Trump after the federal indictment against him was unsealed late last week. … |
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| Former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) said Tuesday that it "bothers" him that Republican leaders are unwilling to look at the evidence in the latest indictment against former President Trump. “These are very serious charges with very sensitive material that he was hiding in his spare bathroom and in a ballroom," Hogan said on "CNN This Morning." "These are not just frivolous charges. And it bothers me that some of our … |
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Upcoming news themes and events we're watching: |
- 123 days until Louisiana's gubernatorial primary
- 147 days until Kentucky's and Mississippi's gubernatorial generals
- 506 days until the 2024 general election
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Ohio becomes next ground-zero in the abortion battle |
© Associated Press/Samantha Hendrickson |
Ballot measure elections generally tend to be sleepy affairs – but one in Ohio is roiling the state as voters potentially weigh in on an amendment that could determine whether abortion rights are enshrined in the state constitution. As The Hill's Caroline Vakil reports this morning, Ohioans will head to the polls on Aug. 8 to weigh in on a proposed constitutional amendment that would require a higher threshold of 60 percent of voters to pass any changes to the state's constitution – up from the simple majority needed currently. The proposed constitutional amendment comes ahead of a potential measure that could be on the ballot this November, which is seeking to enshrine abortion rights into the state's constitution. Should the Aug. 8 ballot measure pass, it could make it harder for Democrats and abortion rights activists to pass their own initiative later this fall. The election has sparked unusual bipartisan criticism over the effort, turning Ohio into the latest battleground over abortion access. "It's such a power grab on so many levels, and I think it really is an attempt to silence the voice of the people," Ohio state Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio (D) told Caroline. |
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Branch out with a different read from The Hill: |
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Anthony Scaramucci, who served as White House communications director under former President Trump, said Monday that he believes Trump is "stressed" about the indictment and predicted he will eventually drop out of the 2024 White House race. "I know President Trump’s personality reasonably well," Scaramucci said in an interview on NewsNation's "Cuomo." "Remember, it wasn’t just 11 days for me; it was 71 campaign … |
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) on Monday said President Biden is mentally strong enough to serve in the White House, as Biden faces regular questions about his age amid his 2024 reelection bid. "Do you think he's cognitively strong enough to be president?" Fox News host Sean Hannity asked Newsom in an interview that aired Monday. "I have conversations with him all the time, yes. And I'll tell you what. I'm dead serious … |
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Local and state headlines regarding campaigns and elections: |
- Democrats' plan to take control of Congress could depend on Southern California (Los Angeles Times)
- Biden campaign touts bipartisanship, but progressives worry about more compromise (The Boston Globe)
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Election news we've flagged from other outlets: |
- No Labels likely to back off third party bid if DeSantis emerges as GOP nominee (Politico)
- G.O.P. Hopefuls Haley and Scott Show Openness to Criticizing Trump (The New York Times)
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Key stories on The Hill right now: |
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Senior Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee are raising concerns about what role Trump-appointed federal judge Aileen Cannon will have in handling the case the Department of Justice is bringing against former President Trump. Cannon, a member of the conservative Federalist Society who was confirmed to sit on the district court for … Read more |
| Former President Trump has arrived at a federal courthouse in Miami Tuesday afternoon where he was booked ahead of his first appearance for an arraignment after being indicted on 37 counts in the federal investigation into classified documents found at his Florida home, Mar-a-Lago. Officials said the former president technically was not … Read more |
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Opinions related to campaigns and elections submitted to The Hill: |
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