People in New York shared mixed reactions to former President Trump saying that he’ll be indicted and arrested by the Manhattan district attorney’s office Tuesday.
“It’s about time that somebody arrested him,” a New York native, Steve, told Fox News.
But another local, Brian, said: “I don’t get why we’re still trying to find this guy guilty of stuff.”
“It’s been seven years. Nothing’s gonna come of it,” he added. “Let’s move on.”
On Saturday, Trump posted on Truth Social that he would be arrested Tuesday for charges related to his alleged 2016 hush money scandal with adult film star Stormy Daniels. Earlier last week, a court source told Fox News that District Attorney Alvin Bragg requested a meeting with law enforcement to “discuss logistics for some time next week, which would mean that they are anticipating an indictment next week.”
“I don’t think it’s right,” one man, Rick, told Fox News on Monday. “I don’t think they should be going after a president and arresting him.”
But a Trump supporter, Gayle, disagreed.
“I think it’s great,” Gayle said. “It will give him more notoriety and his base will get even stronger.”
Warren said he thinks the former president “should get locked up.”
“He’s broken laws and I just feel like if anybody else breaks laws they have to go to court,” he told Fox News. “It doesn’t matter the stature of where he’s at. He should get locked up.”
The potential indictment is centered around whether Trump covered up a $130,000 payment from his then-lawyer, Michael Cohen, to Daniels to prevent her from speaking about her alleged 2006 affair with Trump. Trump, who has denied an affair with the porn star, reportedly reimbursed Cohen through installments.
Some have speculated that Bragg’s office may claim the donation violated campaign finance laws if the nondisclosure agreement benefited Trump’s campaign.
“I think it would be really great if the DA started looking at real crime in Manhattan like all pot stores that have opened up rather than something that may have happened seven years ago,” Brian said.
Trump wrote Saturday on Truth Social: “Now illegal leaks from a corrupt & highly political Manhattan district attorney’s office, which has allowed new records to be set in violent crime & whose leader is funded by George Soros, indicate that … the far & away leading republican candidate & former President of the United States of America, will be arrested on Tuesday of next week. Protest, take our nation back!”
Doug told Fox News “it was a PR stunt done by the former president” and that “we’ll have to stand by and see what really happens.”
A lifelong New Yorker, Mahmoud, was confident that whatever happens on Tuesday, Trump will walk away unscathed.
“They won’t hold anything on him,” he said. “They already raided him. He gets out of it.”
“He was a good president honestly, way better than sleepy Joe,” he added. “I didn’t like him at first, but he gave us the truth as it was, so we were better off, I guess.”
To watch the full video of New Yorkers reacting to a potential Trump arrest, click here.