Former President Donald Trump addressed the nation on Tuesday night following an arraignment in Manhattan earlier in the day.
The arraignment took place around 2:15 pm ET. Trump then returned to Florida and addressed supporters gathered at his Mar-a-Lago home around 8:15 pm ET.
Trump Speaks from Mar-a-Lago
When: Tuesday, April 4, 2023
Time: 8:15 pm ET
Where: Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida
Full Video: Watch Below
Full Video – Trump Addresses Nation (4/4/23)
Trump addressed supporters and the nation from Mar-a-Lago following his return from New York City.
Full Video – Trump Arraignment Rallies (4/4/23)
A live stream of the activity outside the Manhattan courthouse where the former President is expected to be arraigned around 2:15 pm ET. The live stream from Manhattan is expected to begin around 12 noon today.
Amid the news today concerning Trump’s arrangement, a new Reuters poll released yesterday shows the former president’s support surging among Republicans with a lead that has widened since the same poll was taken last month:
Former U.S. President Donald Trump has widened his lead over his rivals in the 2024 Republican presidential nominating contest, even as he faces criminal charges in New York, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Monday.
Some 48% of self-described Republicans say they want Trump to be their party’s presidential nominee, up from 44% in a March 14-20 poll.
Some 19% back his closest rival, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, down from 30% last month. Other likely rivals polled in the single digits.
The online poll was conducted between March 31 and April 3, after news broke that Trump would face criminal charges related to hush money paid to a p-rn star before the 2016 election.
To put that in perspective, Trump’s lead over Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has nearly doubled in the past few weeks:
REUTERS/IPSOS POLL: Donald Trump holds 29-POINT lead over Ron DeSantis
March 20:
• Trump — 44% (+14)
• DeSantis — 30%APRIL 3:
• Trump — 48% (+29)
• DeSantis — 19%
As to whether the indictment by Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg has hurt or helped Trump’s chances in the 2024 GOP primary, it’s looking more and more like the latter. While there were some Republicans ready to move on from Trump, it appears the ongoing politically-motivated persecution of a former president over minor charges is re-igniting support and perhaps re-uniting some factions within the Republican Party.
Going a little deeper into the Reuters poll, it appears that Americans believe the hush money payments may have occurred, but they aren’t moved by them and view the ordeal as a politically-calculated stunt by a highly partisan, left-leaning District Attorney:
Some 71% of Americans, including 58% of Republicans, say it is believable that Trump paid p-rn star Stormy Daniels to keep quiet about an affair ahead of the 2016 presidential election. Trump has proclaimed his innocence and denied the affair, though he has acknowledged paying Daniels.
At the same time, 51% of poll respondents, including 80% of Republicans, said they believed the charges are politically motivated.
Those figures are largely unchanged from last month.
We will know more sometime today when the indictment is unsealed and the full accounting of charges being brought against Trump is revealed to the public.
