--- title: How Republicans Are Reacting to Donald Trump’s Indictment description: “A sad day for America,” “witch hunt,” “sham,” “political prosecution” — GOP loyalists have quickly come to the former President’s defense. canonical: https://time.com/6267488/donald-trump-indictment-republicans-react/ author: Chad de Guzman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2023-03-31T04:15:49.000Z article:modified_time: 2023-12-11T20:32:16.000Z article:section: Politics og:title: How Republicans Are Reacting to Donald Trump’s Indictment og:description: “A sad day for America,” “witch hunt,” “sham,” “political prosecution” — GOP loyalists have quickly come to the former President’s defense og:url: https://time.com/6267488/donald-trump-indictment-republicans-react/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf3ab161de2773045/698a3b6b929fad2602bf9af0/president-donald-trump-Indictment-06.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2400 og:image:height: 1350 og:image:alt: Breaking: Donald Trump Indictment og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: How Republicans Are Reacting to Donald Trump’s Indictment twitter:description: “A sad day for America,” “witch hunt,” “sham,” “political prosecution” — GOP loyalists have quickly come to the former President’s defense twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf3ab161de2773045/698a3b6b929fad2602bf9af0/president-donald-trump-Indictment-06.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 video:duration: 01:54 video:published: 2023-03-31 section: politics topics: Trump indictment, witch hunt claims, 2024 presidential election, political investigations, affordable housing, homelessness, education priorities, Democrats and Republicans genre: vox pop, news reaction tones: dismissive, frustrated, opinionated, weary emotions: frustration (high), skepticism (high), weariness (medium) sentiment: negative audience: US voters, political news followers, readers interested in the 2024 election people: Donald Trump, Joe Biden organizations: Democratic Party content_suitability: politics [00:00-01:54]; crime [00:00-01:15] transcript_source: automatic transcription transcript_reviewed: not applicable ---  # How Republicans Are Reacting to the Indictment of Former President Donald Trump > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=9ddfa618-3586-494b-8b83-7a4c2e5f120b&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Americans React to News of Donald Trump's Impending Indictment [Watch (HLS stream): Americans React to News of Donald Trump's Impending Indictment](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/ugn0W52t.m3u8) (1:54)  _Published 2023-03-31. Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, prosecutors and defense lawyers said Thursday, making him the first former U.S. president to face a criminal charge and jolting his bid to retake the White House next year._ Description, summary, key points, chapters, key quotes, questions and transcript, where present, were produced automatically from the video or its captions and were not reviewed. ## Summary Americans react to news that Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, the first former U.S. president to face a criminal charge. Several speakers call the case a witch hunt and argue it will benefit Trump or hurt Democrats. Others say the focus should shift to issues like homelessness, affordable housing and education, and express weariness with the investigations of both Trump and Biden. ## Key points - One speaker says that if you do something wrong you should be like everybody else and have to deal with it. (00:00) - One speaker expects the outcome to be a really light sentence, and says this usually happens when someone is influential or has a lot of money. (00:07) - One speaker says people should focus on issues such as people struggling on the streets, affordable housing and education. (00:23) - A speaker calls the indictment stupid, says it will not get anywhere, and says it will come back to be bad on the Democrats. (00:49) - A speaker says it is a Democrat-run state and calls the case a witch hunt they do not think will be fair. (00:58) - A speaker says they expected the indictment because they saw it in the news and that it gives Trump an advantage going into the 2024 election. (01:10) - A speaker says there has been a continuous witch hunt since 2016 and that all of the allegations have been proven false. (01:15) - A speaker says that if Biden had any guts he would say let's stop this nonsense, and says they are sick of the Trump and Biden investigations. (01:29) ## Chapters - [00:00 to 00:19] Views on accountability and expected sentence. Speakers discuss whether Trump should face the same consequences as others and whether a light sentence is expected. - [00:19 to 00:49] Calls to focus on everyday issues. Speakers argue that political news should give way to issues such as affordable housing, education and people struggling on the streets. - [00:49 to 01:10] Charge seen as a witch hunt. Speakers dismiss the indictment as stupid and unfair and predict it will backfire on Democrats. - [01:10 to 01:54] Expectations for 2024 and fatigue with investigations. Speakers say the indictment may help Trump in 2024 and express frustration with investigations of both Trump and Biden. ## Key quotes - [00:00] interviewer: "It's not a witch hunt, you do something wrong, you should be just like everybody else and have to deal with it." - [00:07] interviewer: "I have a feeling it's going to probably get a really light sentence, but that's just the way it goes." - [00:58] interviewer: "It's a Democrats run state so what you can expect it's a witch hunt so I don't think it's going to be fair" - [01:15] interviewer: "I think it actually gives him an advantage going into the 2024 election" - [01:44] interviewer: "I'm sick of the Trump investigations I'm sick of the Biden investigations" ## Questions this video answers - Should Donald Trump face the same consequences as anyone else if he did something wrong? [00:00] - Do speakers expect Trump's sentence to be light? [00:07] - What issues do speakers think deserve more attention than the indictment? [00:23] - Do speakers think the indictment will help or hurt Trump or the Democrats? [00:49] - Do speakers believe the investigation will be fair? [00:58] - How do speakers feel about ongoing investigations of Trump and Biden? [01:29] ## Content suitability - politics [00:00-01:54]: Discussion of a former president's criminal indictment and partisan political views throughout. - crime [00:00-01:15]: Speakers discuss a criminal indictment and possible sentencing.  by [Chad de Guzman](https://time.com/author/chad-de-guzman/)  ## Chad de Guzman Reporter Updated: Dec 11, 2023 8:32 PM UTCPublished: Mar 31, 2023 4:15 AM UTC Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, prosecutors and defense lawyers said Thursday, making him the first former U.S. president to face a criminal charge and jolting his bid to retake the White House next year.  by [Chad de Guzman](https://time.com/author/chad-de-guzman/)  ## Chad de Guzman Reporter Updated: Dec 11, 2023 8:32 PM UTCPublished: Mar 31, 2023 4:15 AM UTC Donald Trump made history on Thursday, becoming the [first former U.S. president to be criminally charged](https://time.com/6264880/president-arrested-indicted-history-trump/), after a Manhattan grand jury [voted to indict him](https://time.com/6261993/donald-trump-indictment-updates/) in a case related to paying hush money to former adult movie star Stormy Daniels during his 2016 presidential campaign. The news comes as Trump is in the midst of his third campaign for President. In a statement, he called the indictment “political persecution and election interference at the highest level.” Many of the former President’s fellow Republicans have quickly come to his defense, expressing varying levels of dismay at the indictment, with some even vowing to take official countermeasures however they can. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who is believed to be Trump’s main rival for the GOP presidential nomination, lambasted the indictment. “The Soros-backed Manhattan District Attorney has consistently bent the law to downgrade felonies and to excuse criminal misconduct,” DeSantis [tweeted](https://twitter.com/GovRonDeSantis/status/1641575007552778243), referring to Democratic mega-donor [George Soros and Alvin Bragg](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/23/us/politics/alvin-bragg-george-soros-trump.html), the Manhattan District Attorney overseeing the case. “Yet, now he is stretching the law to target a political opponent.” DeSantis added that “Florida will not assist in an extradition request given the questionable circumstances.” The [Constitution](https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/constitution-transcript#4-2) and [federal law](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/3182) require states to comply with other state’s extradition requests, though one of Trump’s attorneys [told TIME](https://time.com/6267428/donald-trump-indictment-latest-updates/) that the former President is expected to turn himself in to be arraigned in New York on Tuesday. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise called the indictment on Thursday night a “[sham](https://twitter.com/SteveScalise/status/1641565912120582148),” and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy also backed Trump, [tweeting](https://twitter.com/SpeakerMcCarthy/status/1641574001934757889) that “Alvin Bragg has irreparably damaged our country in an attempt to interfere in our Presidential election.” McCarthy added that “the House of Representatives will hold Alvin Bragg and his unprecedented abuse of power to account.” A number of Republican members of Congress responded similarly on Twitter: > [](https://twitter.com/laurenboebert/status/1641563068227354627) > [](https://twitter.com/tedcruz/status/1641561317076082691) > [](https://twitter.com/SenThomTillis/status/1641560721166159872) > [](https://twitter.com/leezeldin/status/1641562795425648644) “This is an attack on every American,” [tweeted](https://twitter.com/RepLuna/status/1641570590933897220) Florida Rep. Anna Paulina Luna. “Every single Member of Congress needs to think long and hard about their oath of office. Your next moves will show the world exactly who you are.” It’s not clear, however, what Congress can do. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia called once again for President Joe Biden’s impeachment, [tweeting](https://twitter.com/RepMTG/status/1641570352764448771) that “the gloves are off.” > [](https://twitter.com/RepMTG/status/1641570352764448771) Some Republicans have used the indictment [to raise money](https://twitter.com/AndrewSolender/status/1641570569677328386). “The Deep State thinks this will destroy our movement and keep you quiet,” the National Republican Congressional Committee [reportedly sent in a fundraising email](https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/03/30/nyregion/trump-indictment-news?smid=url-share#after-an-indictment-a-barrage-of-fund-raising-emails) that implored recipients to “prove them wrong.” “After YEARS of sham impeachment attempts, the radical Left is still refusing to give up on their liberally biased vendetta,” reads a fundraising [email from Missouri Senator Josh Hawley](https://politicalemails.org/messages/1002573). “Stand with conservatives NOW.” Speaking to [Fox News](https://www.foxnews.com/video/6323680215112), Hawley said Congress must call on Attorney General Merrick Garland to question if the Biden administration or “dark money” were involved in the indictment. Trump’s former Vice President Mike Pence, who just earlier this month said at a political dinner that “history will hold Donald Trump accountable” for his role in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, [told CNN](https://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2023/03/31/mike-pence-trump-grand-jury-indictment-reaction-sot-vpx.cnn) on Thursday night that the indictment of a former U.S. President “on a campaign finance issue is an outrage.” “How does this end?” Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina [said on Fox News on Thursday](https://twitter.com/justinbaragona/status/1641620245273034756). “Trump wins in court, and he wins the election. That’s how this ends.” House Republican Conference Chair Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York [said in a statement](https://www.eliseforcongress.com/2023/03/30/house-republican-conference-chair-elise-stefaniks-statement-on-the-unprecedented-and-scam-indictment-of-president-trump/): “Tens of millions of patriotic Americans have never been so energized to exercise their constitutional rights to peacefully organize and VOTE at the ballot box to save our great republic by electing President Donald J. Trump in 2024.” “There is no coming back from this moment,” [said](https://twitter.com/TuckerCarlson/status/1641595845421170696) Fox News host [Tucker Carlson](https://time.com/6080432/tucker-carlson-profile/), [adding](https://twitter.com/AccountableGOP/status/1641609219940966400) later that it’s “probably not the best time to give up your AR-15s.” Rudy Giuliani, Trump’s former lawyer, [tweeted](https://twitter.com/RudyGiuliani/status/1641559715883655168) after the news of the indictment that it’s a “sad day for America.” Adam Kinzinger, a former Republican representative from Illinois, expressed a similar sentiment, [posting on Twitter](https://twitter.com/AdamKinzinger/status/1641571282264227841) that “today is a somber day for our nation.” But Kinzinger, who was one of only 10 Republicans [to back Trump’s impeachment in 2021](https://www.npr.org/2021/01/14/956621191/these-are-the-10-republicans-who-voted-to-impeach-trump), is among the few members of his party who aren’t outraged by the former President’s indictment. “Donald Trump committed many crimes, but this indictment should be a reminder that in America, NO ONE is above the law.” Don Bacon, a moderate Republican congressman from Nebraska, was more reserved in his reaction to the indictment than some of his colleagues. Bacon [told Axios](https://www.axios.com/2023/03/30/congress-enters-dangerous-territory-trump-indicted) that he trusts the legal system: “There’s checks and balances with a jury, judges and appeals. President Trump will be able to make his defense and we’ll all see if this is a partisan prosecution or not.” Asa Hutchinson, the former governor of Arkansas and a potential Republican primary contender against Trump, [previously suggested](https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2023/03/11/trump-quit-2024-race-indicted-hutchinson/11452360002/) that the former President should drop out of the 2024 race if charged. After the indictment, he [said in a statement](https://twitter.com/AsaHutchinson/status/1641569124865175553) that “it is essential that the decision on America’s next President be made at the ballot box and not in the court system. Donald Trump should not be the next President, but that should be decided by the voters.” Trump [has survived years of legal trouble before](https://time.com/6215419/trump-legal-trouble-key-strategies/). Michael Cohen, Trump’s former personal attorney and a key witness to the Manhattan prosecutors, [told CNN](https://edition.cnn.com/politics/live-news/trump-indictment-hush-money-stormy-daniels/h%5F5d7f185da3631976b4558bbc865247a7) that this indictment was “a long time coming.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/6267488/donald-trump-indictment-republicans-react/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/6267488/donald-trump-indictment-republicans-react/"},"headline":"How Republicans Are Reacting to the Indictment of Former President Donald Trump","datePublished":"2023-03-31T04:15:49.000Z","dateModified":"2023-12-11T20:32:16.000Z","description":"“A sad day for America,” “witch hunt,” “sham,” “political prosecution” — GOP loyalists have quickly come to the former President’s defense.","url":"https://time.com/6267488/donald-trump-indictment-republicans-react/","keywords":["republicans","News Team"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf3ab161de2773045/698a3b6b929fad2602bf9af0/president-donald-trump-Indictment-06.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Chad de Guzman","jobTitle":"Reporter","url":"https://time.com/author/chad-de-guzman/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf3ab161de2773045/698a3b6b929fad2602bf9af0/president-donald-trump-Indictment-06.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Breaking: Donald Trump Indictment","caption":"Former President Donald Trump at the America First Policy Institute in D.C., July 26, 2022.","creditText":"Kent Nishimura—Los Angeles Times/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/tag/republicans/","name":"republicans"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/6267488/donald-trump-indictment-republicans-react/","name":"How Republicans Are Reacting to the Indictment of Former President Donald Trump"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Americans React to News of Donald Trump's Impending Indictment","description":"Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, prosecutors and defense lawyers said Thursday, making him the first former U.S. president to face a criminal charge and jolting his bid to retake the White House next year.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/ugn0W52t/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2023-03-31T17:00:47.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/ugn0W52t.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/6267488/donald-trump-indictment-republicans-react/","duration":"PT1M54S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/6267488/donald-trump-indictment-republicans-react/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```