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Former President Donald Trump called his federal indictment a “travesty of justice” in his first public appearance since

Kari Lake, the GOP nominee and election denier who lost the 2022 Arizona gubernatorial election, has issued an incendiary warning to the Biden administration over the indictment of Donald Trump. The former president has been indicted on 37 counts in relation to his allegedly illegal retention of classified national security information that he’s reported to have taken with him to his Palm Beach, Florida club Mar-a-Lago after leaving the White House in January 2021. The consensus among legal experts appears to be that Mr Trump is in serious legal jeopardy that may end in a decades-long prison sentence. That hasn’t stopped many Republicans, including Ms Lake, to come to his defence as they attempt to portray the legal action taken by Special Counsel Jack Smith as politically motivated. Ms Lake said on Friday that those wishing to go after Mr Trump would have to go through her and all those who supported Mr Trump in the 2020 election – 75 million people. She then went on to falsely say that “most of us are card-carrying members” of the National Rifle Association (NRA). The organisation reportedly has around 4.3 million members. She specifically called out Mr Smith, President Joe Biden, and Attorney General Merrick Garland. “I have a message tonight for Merrick Garland, and Jack Smith, and Joe Biden,” Ms Lake said as she was speaking at the Georgia Republican Party convention. “And the guys back there in the fake news media, you should listen up as well, this one’s for you.” “If you wanna get to President Trump, you’re gonna have to go through me, and you’re gonna have to go through 75 million Americans just like me,” she claimed. “And I’m gonna tell you, most of us are card-carrying members of the NRA,” she added to cheers from the crowd. “That’s not a threat, that’s a public service announcement.” Washington Post reporter Isaac Arnsdorf quoted Ms Lake on Twitter and noted that she received a standing ovation. Responding to Mr Arnsdorf, Ms Lake wrote: “I meant what I said.” Ms Lake was replacing former vice president and GOP presidential candidate Mike Pence after he dropped out of his planned speech at the Georgia convention, according to Mediaite. Ms Lake has been an aggressive supporter of Mr Trump and in January it was reported that she was one of the candidates the ex-president was considering as a possible running mate in 2024. Reed Galen of the Lincoln Project said Ms Lake’s kind of rhetoric had sparked violence in the past, listing a number of mass shootings. “This will escalate. We’ve seen the results of these words: El Paso, Pittsburgh, Buffalo, Allen, N. Charleston, Christchurch,” he tweeted. “How does this not warrant at least a visit by Secret Service?” Nicky Frank asked. “Congrats to all the wise consultants out there who decided that Trumpism would fade away. Take a f***ing bow folks, you negotiated with the terrorists and it worked out great,” one Twitter user added. “This is shocking. Kari Lake should issue a retraction and apology. This is not even a veiled threat of a violent war in America. It is a call to arms,” Jon Hinck said. Read More Some in Georgia GOP seek purity test as Trump appears at convention in aftermath of indictment Republican Karrin Taylor Robson says she won't run for Sinema's Senate seat in Arizona Kari Lake suffers final defeat in bid to overturn Arizona governor’s race that she lost Ivanka and Jared split over attending Trump 2024 launch – follow live Why was Donald Trump impeached twice during his first term? Four big lies Trump told during his 2024 presidential announcement

By Nathan Layne Former president Donald Trump used the first public appearance since his federal indictment to ratchet

Former vice president Mike Pence refused to answer a question from The Independent about whether he had read the indictment against former president Donald Trump as he left the North Carolina Republican Party’s convention on Saturday. Mr Pence was exiting the Koury Convention Center in Greensboro after he spoke to the convention for its First in Freedom Lunch and was taking a selfie with a supporter. His staff said “no gaggle” when asked whether the former vice president had read the indictment. This came despite the fact that during his speech, he criticised Mr Trump’s indictment by a grand jury as politicised, calling it a “sad day for America.” “I had hoped the Department of Justice would see its way clear to resolve the issues involving the former president without an indictment and I'm deeply troubled to see this indictment move forward,” he said. Mr Pence said he had been one of the first people to call on US Attorney General Merrick Garland to unseal the indictment. “Today, I'm calling on the Attorney General to stand before the American people and explain why this was necessary in his words,” Mr Pence said. “Attorney General Merrick Garland, stop hiding behind the special counsel and stand before the American people and explain why this indictment went forward.” A grand jury under the supervision of Special Counsel Jack Smith chose to indict Mr Trump. The unsealed 49-page indictment showed that Mr Trump faced 37 counts. Mr Trump was charged with “with felony violations of our national security laws as well as participating in a conspiracy to obstruct justice” by a grand jury in the Southern District of Florida. The indictment accuses Mr Trump of showing classified documents to unauthorised people at his Bedminster, New Jersey golf club on two occasions, once with a writer and a publisher working on a book by his former chief of staff Mark Meadows and another time when he showed a classified map of an unnamed country that involved staff working for Mr Trump’s political action committee. Still, the former vice president sought to draw a distinction between himself and the former president on issues ranging from abortion to January 6. “It gives me no pleasure to say, but on that fateful day, the American people deserve to know that President Trump demanded that I choose between him and the Constitution,” he told attendees in the reception room. “Under the Constitution, states conduct our elections, certify those elections, court challenges can be had, objections can be heard in the Congress,” he said. Mr Pence warned that if Republicans went the path that Mr Trump prescribed, then Democrats would nationalise elections. “I'm glad he said it just to stand his ground and to completely distance himself,” Burt Johnson, who attended the dinner, said. “I don't think it was needed. But he drew a clear line. He was unequivocal. And I think that's important.” But not everyone was pleased with Mr Pence and many still resent the fact that he refused to overturn the 2020 presidential election results on January 6, which led to the mob yelling “hang Mike Pence.” Patricia Koluch of Pender County had a simple reason for why she did not attend Mr Pence’s speech. “Well, January 6,” she told The Independent. “And a lot of behind-the-scenes information about who he really is and what he stands for.” Mr Pence announced his candidacy this week. He also criticised Mr Trump for his admonishing states for passing legislation restricting abortion and for not supporting reforming entitlements like Social Security and Medicare. Read More Trump indictment: Ex-president kept nuclear and military papers and showed some to unauthorised people Mitt Romney’s blistering response to Trump’s damning indictment Trump news – latest: Trump rages ‘Democrat Communists want to jail their opponents’ after indictment unsealed Trump's GOP defenders in Congress leap into action on charges after months of preparation Fox host Mark Levin screams at camera in rant over Trump’s indictment Trump indicted: What to know about the documents case and what's next

By Andy Bruce LONDON Old rifts resurfaced in Britain's ruling Conservative Party on Saturday following former Prime Minister

Former President Donald Trump is set to return to the campaign trail Saturday, traveling to Georgia and North Carolina for speeches at a pair of state Republican conventions as news of his federal indictment roils the party's 2024 presidential race.

The federal indictment against Donald Trump is rooted in the contents of the classified documents he kept after

When US President Joe Biden visited Poland in February, his second visit in less than a year, it was something of a vindication for the Polish government. A clear sign that Poland was still a key ally -- despite accusations that its government is undermining democracy and the rule of law.

Montenegro votes in an early parliamentary election which is seen as a test of whether the small NATO-member Balkan country can overcome deep internal political divisions and instability that have hampered its European Union membership path

More changes could be coming to voting districts in some states

Mr Johnston says he is stepping down because of the "highly partisan atmosphere" around his appointment.

In another era, a Republican frontrunner facing his second indictment in three months would mean that primary voters would actively be shopping for other candidates to put up against a president as unpopular as President Joe Biden. Instead, former president Donald Trump’s indictment, which he announced on Thursday evening and which was unsealed on Friday, calcified his support among Republican voters at the North Carolina Republican Convention in Greensboro. If anything, the 37-charge indictment accusing Mr Trump of showing highly classified information to unauthorised persons on two separate occasions made Republicans in the Tar Heel State more likely to support him. “After yesterday?” Beverly Atwell of Forsyth County asked in response to a question from The Independent about who she was leaning towards. “Trump.” Ms Atwell said what happened to Mr Trump was “terrible.” “Everybody needs to support him,” she said. “What Joe Biden has done, only somebody like Trump can fight.” Terry Stafford, an attendee, said the indictment would not affect his vote either way. “I know they’re just making s*** up,” he told The Independent. “If they wanted to show us how true they were, Biden would have been arrested for his crimes.” Friday should have been all about Mr Trump’s main rival for the Republican nomination, Florida Gov Ron DeSantis. Mr DeSantis addressed a packed house for the Old North State Dinner at the Koury Convention Center. The super PAC that supports Mr DeSantis called Never Back Down had a booth on the third floor of the building. One campaign button being sold showed Mr DeSantis telling Mr Trump, “hold my beer.” The convention is meant to be a cattle call for the top Republican presidents. Former vice president Mike Pence will speak there on Saturday afternoon during a luncheon and Mr Trump will deliver one of his first speeches since his indictment in the evening after he speaks at the Georgia GOP’s state convention earlier in the day. Alan Pugh of Randolph County told The Independent that the GOP had a wide array of qualified candidates, citing not just Mr Trump and Mr DeSantis but also Sen Tim Scott of South Carolina and Gov Doug Burgum of North Dakota. But he said that Mr DeSantis had received much of the talk. “I think the reason is, simply the fact that his record in Florida,” he said, noting how Mr DeSantis went from narrowly winning his first race to winning re-election by almost twenty per cent and carrying the Hispanic vote. “People like whoever you want to, but we’ve got to win. And DeSantis is a winner.” But Mr Trump dominated the discussion. Even Mr DeSantis spoke about the Department of Justice “weaponising” itself against conservatives, though he didn’t mention the former president by name. “Our Founding Fathers would have absolutely predicted the weaponisation of these agencies, particularly Justice and the FBI, because if we don’t have constitutional accountability, human nature is such that they will abuse their power,” he said. He also criticised the Justice Department for not indicting former secretary of state Hillary Clinton for using a private email server during her tenure as secretary. “Is there a different standard for a Democrat secretary of state versus a former Republican president,” he said. “I think there needs to be one standard of justice in this country.” Republican presidential candidates find themselves in a bind in that they now have to simultaneously show their support for the twice-impeached and now twice-indicted former president and make the case that they are a more optimal choice. Even Mr Pugh, who praised Mr DeSantis, said that even though he was not committed to any candidate, the charges helped Mr Trump “because he’s being attacked by our own government.” “Our own Justice Department,” he said. “That infuriates me as a lawyer.” Republicans will likely continue to feel pressure to show solidarity with Mr Trump. Charlie Kirk, the chief executive of Turning Point USA, tweeted that every Republican should suspend their campaign and go down to Miami to show support for Mr Trump. “Either we have an opposition party or we don't,” he said. “GO to Miami Tuesday, and show solidarty or we will mark you as part of the oppsition [sic].” The predicament many Republicans face is personified by one poster in one of the booths at the convention centre which featured a quote from Ronald Reagan showing his 11th commandment: “Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican.” Read More DeSantis pledges to restore name of notorious Confederate general Braxton Bragg to Fort Liberty Florida man: Why prosecutors charged Trump in the Sunshine State, and what it means for the judge and jury Trump indictment: Ex-president kept nuclear and military papers and showed some to unauthorised people Hiding documents from the FBI and foreign nuclear plans: Key allegations in Trump’s unsealed indictment Ivanka and Jared split over attending Trump 2024 launch – follow live Why was Donald Trump impeached twice during his first term? Four big lies Trump told during his 2024 presidential announcement