When Donald Trump Warned He'll 'Blackmail' Joe Biden if Charges on Him Aren't Dropped
Throwback to when Donald Trump had already begun pushing for indictments against President Joe Biden if things didn't happen as he desired. Despite this, an appeals court dismissed Trump's assertions of immunity in the federal election subversion case in the District of Columbia.
Nonetheless, he plans to assert the same argument in Florida, where he is also confronting federal charges related to mishandling classified documents. Furthermore, as reported by Raw Story, the former president made what seemed to be a threatening blackmail against his Democratic opponent.
On his Truth Social platform, Trump wrote, "If a President does not have Immunity, the Opposing Party, during his/her term in Office, can extort and blackmail the President by saying that, 'if you don’t give us everything we want, we will Indict you for things you did while in Office,' even if everything done was totally Legal and Appropriate."
Trump has left no room for doubts regarding his intentions to use the Department of Justice against his adversaries if granted another term. Furthermore, he also identified some of these individuals by name.
This is not a normal campaign strategy. Trump makes it clear, his administration would be consumed with revenge not governing
— rmc (@Thelast_try) February 7, 2024
He posted, "That would be the end of the Presidency, and our Country, as we know it, and is just one of the many Traps there would be for a President without Presidential Immunity. Obama, Bush, and soon, Crooked Joe Biden, would all be in PRISON. Protect Presidential Immunity. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!"
Meanwhile, as reported by Rolling Stone, in one of his earlier Truth Social posts, Trump wrote, "If I don’t get Immunity, then Crooked Joe Biden doesn’t get Immunity, and with the Border Invasion and Afghanistan Surrender, alone, not to mention the Millions of dollars that went into his “pockets” with money from foreign countries, Joe would be ripe for Indictment."
Additionally, in a late December development, the Supreme Court rejected a plea from Special Counsel Jack Smith to fast-track a decision on Trump's immunity from prosecution for potential crimes during his presidency. Smith's motion followed a ruling by D.C. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, ruling against Trump's attempt to dismiss the Department of Justice's case alleging election interference.
Despite the outcome awaiting in court, Trump has long been strategizing his revenge against prosecutors and Democrats. Moreover, in November of the previous year, Trump hinted at utilizing his governmental authority to pursue legal action against his political adversaries if he secures reelection.
He said, “If I happen to be president, and I see somebody who is doing well and beating me very badly, I’ll say, ‘Go down and indict them.'" Meanwhile, as reported by CNN, recently a federal appeals court wrote, “For the purpose of this criminal case, former President Trump has become citizen Trump, with all of the defenses of any other criminal defendant. But any executive immunity that may have protected him while he served as President no longer protects him against this prosecution." Nevertheless, Trump's spokesperson Steven Cheung hinted at the likelihood of an appeal in the future.
Editor's note: This article was originally published on February 8, 2024. It has since been updated.