Amid intense security preparations in New York, the Guardian newspaper revealed that former US President Donald Trump pledged to his close associates that he wanted to launch an attack over the weekend at Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, saying it was time to "scare" them politically.
Trump has told advisers and associates in recent days that he is ready to escalate attacks against Manhattan Attorney General Alvin Bragg, who revived the criminal prosecution of payments to buy actress Stormy Daniels' silence in 2016 after he was indicted by a jury.
Trump had indicated that he would attack the Manhattan prosecutor weeks before the grand jury handed over an indictment against him (Thursday), and he said in posts on the Truth Social website: The prosecution was purely political, accusing Alvin Bragg of being mentally ill.
And this plan was developed at his resort in Mar-a-Lago on the sidelines of strategic meetings that Trump held with advisors and participants on how to respond to the indictment from a legal and political point of view, which were revealed by two sources close to the former president.
With the indictment secret until Trump's trial date tomorrow (Tuesday), the specific charges remained unclear, although they are expected to include falsifying business records and additional charges.
Surprised by the indictment, Trump spent the next 24 hours absorbing the news passed to him by several of his senior advisers, and later repeated almost incredulously to himself that prosecutors had in fact charged him. The shock dissipated by the end of the week, when Trump changed his tone and told his team he wanted to attack the case and fight prosecutors.
Trump steadfastly maintains that he did nothing illegal and will not accept a plea bargain that would force him to confess.
Okaz (Washington) @okaz_online