By Mary Lou Masters
Former U.N. Ambassador and 2024 presidential candidate Nikki Haley responded to former President Donald Trump’s announcement that he’s being indicted over the alleged mishandling of classified documents Friday.
Trump said in a Truth Social post Thursday evening that he and his lawyers were informed of the indictment relating to the FBI’s raid on the former president’s Mar-a-Lago home in August, where they recovered over 300 pages worth of classified documents. Haley criticized the imminent indictment of her former boss, where he will reportedly be indicted on seven counts, including conspiracy, willful retention of information and false statements.
“This is not how justice should be pursued in our country,” Haley said in a statement. “The American people are exhausted by the prosecutorial overreach, double standards, and vendetta politics. It’s time to move beyond the endless drama and distractions.”
Trump will appear at a Federal courthouse in Miami, Florida, on June 13 at 3 p.m. News that an indictment was imminent first came Wednesday when Trump received a “target letter” regarding the years-long investigation into the former president led by Special Counsel Jack Smith.
When announcing his indictment, Trump pointed to the classified documents found at the Penn-Biden Center, the president’s think tank in Washington, D.C., and his Delaware home, from his time as vice president to former President Barack Obama. The FBI also searched former Vice President Mike Pence’s home where they retained one classified document.
Trump slammed the Biden administration in video on Truth Social following his initial announcement of the charges, and characterized the indictment as a “witch hunt” and “election interference.”
Several other Republican presidential candidates reacted to the indictment, with businessman Vivek Ramaswamy promising to pardon Trump if he becomes president, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis calling the charges a “weaponization” of the law and Pence admitting he’s “troubled” by the indictment. Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie cautioned his followers to trust what Trump posts on the social media app, and former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson called for Trump to drop out of the race.
The former president faces another indictment from Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, where he pleaded not guilty to 34 counts in an alleged hush money criminal case. The years-long investigation relates to whether Trump paid former attorney Michael Cohen back via forged business records after Cohen gave porn star actress Stormy Daniels $130,000 to keep quiet about an alleged affair with Trump.
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