Top Republicans have rallied to Donald Trump's defence after the former US president revealed that he is expecting to be arrested.
Republicans are supporting Donald Trump after he said that he will be arrested this week
Trump declared over the weekend that he fears he will be arrested on Tuesday (21.03.23) in a criminal case involving hush money paid to porn star Stormy Daniels and both allies and rivals within the Republican Party are supporting him.
Former vice-president Mike Pence - who is expected to launch a bid for the White House in 2024 - said: "The idea of indicting a former president of the United States is deeply troubling to me, as it is to tens of millions of Americans."
House of Representatives speaker Kevin McCarthy is also backing Trump and suggested that the possible arrest would be "an outrageous abuse of power by a radical DA (district attorney) who lets violent criminals walk as he pursues political vengeance" against the former president.
The support for Trump highlights that he is still the most popular figure in the Republican party and Twitter owner Elon Musk suggested that the controversial politician would win the 2024 election by a landslide if he is indicted.
Law enforcement officials in New York have been making security preparations for protests if Trump is arrested and former speaker, Democrat Nancy Pelosi, criticised the "reckless" nature of his announcement.
She said in a statement: "The former president's announcement this morning is reckless: doing so to keep himself in the news and to foment unrest among his supporters."
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