Former President Donald Trump has been under fire since his indictment in New York on Thursday night in connection to the alleged hush money payment he made to Adult Film actress Stormy Daniels during his 2016 campaign. In response to this, Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C. ) urged Fox News viewers to donate to Trump's defense fund and called the indictment "legal voodoo" and "political persecution". Graham also jokingly suggested that Trump should "smash some windows, rob a few shops and punch a cop" on his way to the Manhattan District Attorney's Office in order to avoid prosecution.
The district attorney in question, Alvin Bragg (D), is known for his soft-on-crime reputation and has won fewer felony convictions than his predecessor Cyrus Vance Jr. Bragg issued a memo earlier in the year instructing prosecutors to seek prison sentences for only the most serious crimes, though he later clarified that prosecutors should use their own discretion in handling cases and deciding penalties.
MSNBC host Joe Scarborough criticized Graham's remarks, comparing him with Televangelist Oral Roberts, who asked for donations in the 1980s. Trump has admitted to reimburse his former attorney Michael Cohen for the $130,000 payment Cohen made to Daniels, but denies having an affair with him. Trump has denounced the indictment as politically motivated, and his 2024 campaign has already begun fundraising off the news.