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An ex-lawyer for former President Donald Trump's campaign said in an interview Wednesday that if Trump is indicted by the Department of Justice, "he will run for president."
The comments from attorney Joe diGenova were made on Newsmax's Greg Kelly Reports and came as the Department of Justice is investigating Trump over the possible mishandling of classified documents. Last week, the FBI, with the approval of Attorney General Merrick Garland, carried out a raid of Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort home.
Trump and his allies have sharply criticized the Department of Justice's actions, with Trump saying it is part of an "ongoing witch hunt." In his Wednesday interview, diGenova said Garland is "now crazy."
"He is going to indict Donald Trump, they are going to figure out some charge because they want to harm him, to ruin him, to basically cut him off at the knees so he can't run for president," diGenova said. "This process is arrogant, abusive, an affront to the Constitution. They are going to indict Donald Trump. Merrick Garland has lost his senses."
Kelly then asked diGenova about the possibility of Trump running for reelection if he's indicted by the Department of Justice.
"But I think you pointed out last week, if they do indict him...if they are crazy enough to do it, that doesn't render him ineligible to run or even be president?" Kelly said.
"Eugene Debs ran for president from a federal prison. There's no reason that that's going to happen to Donald Trump, he's not going to be in a federal prison," diGenova said, referring to labor leader Eugene V. Debs, who ran for president in 1920 while serving a prison sentence. "But, if he's indicted, he will run for president," he added.
Nothing in the U.S. Constitution prevents someone convicted of a crime from running for president, or from winning a presidential race.
Newsweek has reached out to Trump's press office and the Department of Justice for comment.
While Trump hasn't formally said he will seek the presidency again in 2024, he has strongly suggested he will launch another campaign. Trump signaled he would run again in an interview in July when he stated it would be "very hard" for him not to do so.
Last week, the state attorney for Palm Beach County, Florida, said that Trump "has to be worried about the mole within Mar-a-Lago" that may have informed investigators about the ex-president's alleged mishandling of documents.
"They had someone on the inside who knew that Trump was allegedly lying about the possession of these documents, and knew where it was located—inside that safe," the prosecutor, Dave Aronberg, said.
About the writer
Xander Landen is a Newsweek weekend reporter. His focus is often U.S. politics, but he frequently covers other issues including ... Read more