Donald Trump heads into a historic initial court appearance today as the first former president to face federal criminal charges, after his indictment for allegedly national defense records at his Mar-a-Lago resort and conspired to obstruct justice to hide them.
Trump has proclaimed his innocence on social media and in speeches, and is expected to plead not guilty at a brief 3 p.m. hearing at the federal courthouse in Miami. Security experts don’t expect violent protests, despite a national audience riveted to the event.
His drive to the courthouse will be televised live from Trump National Doral golf resort. But images from inside court won’t be permitted, in stark contrast from the hallway video and pictures of him at the defense table available inside the during his April arraignment on local charges in New York.
Trump’s representation remains in flux. While he has a rotating cast of lawyers representing him in various civil and criminal investigations, the court clerk reminded Trump his lawyers as of Monday weren’t certified in South Florida.
Here is what we know about Trump’s landmark court appearance:
Who is Walt Nauta?
Waltine “Walt” Nauta, who served as a “body man” to former President Donald Trump, was charged with six counts related to Trump’s alleged mishandling of classified documents seized from Mar-a-Lago.
Nauta, 40, is a former White House valet and longtime Trump personal aide. He was also the only person other than Trump to be charged with crimes following the Justice Department’s investigation.
The indictment charged Nauta with conspiracy to obstruct justice, withholding a document or record, corruptly concealing a document in a federal investigation, scheme to conceal, and false statements and representations. It also alleged that Trump directed Nauta “to move boxes of documents to conceal them.”
But now, Nauta’s longtime loyalty to Trump puts him at risk of a lengthy prison sentence if he is convicted of the charges against him.
-Miles J. Herszenhorn
Trump begins arraignment day by attacking the prosecutor
Trump warmed up for his not guilty plea by launching rhetorical attacks on Special Counsel Jack Smith, a familiar tactic by a defendant who has been in legal trouble and warned about incitement.
Trump used his Truth Social account to make unsubstantiated allegations against Smith, basically arguing that the prosecutor is biased against him.
The ex-president did the same thing after his indictment in New York City in large March, that time targeting Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg – and drawing an admonishment from the judge who ordered him to “refrain from making statements that are likely to incite violence and civil unrest.”
−David Jackson
Where is the Miami federal courthouse?
Trump’s arraignment will be held at the Wilkie D. Ferguson, Jr. U.S. Courthouse in downtown Miami, Florida.
– Rachel Looker
Who is representing Trump at arraignment? Florida lawyer Christopher Kise
Trump found a Florida-certified lawyer to represent him at Tuesday’s arraignment: Christopher Kise.
Kise, a former state solicitor general, represented Trump earlier in the investigation of classified documents seized at Mar-a-Lago, when the former was fighting to have a special master review the records.
Kise will join Todd Blanche, who wasn’t credentialed in Florida. Trump has proclaimed his innocence and is expected to plead not guilty to charges he kept national defense records after leaving the White House and conspired to obstruct justice by keeping them hidden.
His previously hired lawyer, Todd Blanche, who wasn’t certified to represent him in Florida, also filed a formal application asking the judge to allow him to participate in the case.
-David Jackson and Bart Jansen
Can Trump still run for president if he’s indicted?
Yes, Trump can continue his 2024 presidential campaign, even after being indicted again.
“Legally speaking, there is nothing to bar a former president from being indicted for a state crime, running for office – even convicted,” said Jessica Levinson, founding director of Loyola Law School’s Public Service Institute, previously told USA TODAY. ”It really just becomes an issue of, practically, how could you run the country behind bars, if ever came to something like that?”
The Constitution only lays out three requirements to serve as president. You must be:
- A natural-born citizen
- At least 35 years old
- A resident of the U.S. for at least 14 years.
-Marina Pitofsky
What is an arraignment?
An arraignment is when formal charges against an accused defendant are read by a judge. This takes place during a defendant’s first appearance before a judge, where they are told about the specific charges they are facing.
Trump on Tuesday will be asked how he wants to plead to the official charges. In an interview with Politico published on Saturday, Trump said he doesn’t think he’ll be convicted, and said he’s not expecting to take a plea deal.
The judge will then decide if bail is required. They can also choose to set no bail, which would allow Trump to be immediately released without being placed in jail.
– Olivia Munson and Rachel Looker
What time is Trump speaking tonight?
After his federal arraignment in Florida, Trump plans to return to New Jersey for an 8:15 p.m. speech at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster.
The event is billed as similar to a speech he held after his New York. In addition to the speech, Trump is holding a fundraiser at the resort that was planned before the court appearance was scheduled.
-Bart Jansen
No video or photos of Trump inside courthouse: magistrate judge
Federal Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman ruled Monday against allowing video recording or photos inside the courthouse for Trump’s initial appearance as the first former president facing federal criminal charges.
News organizations sought to record the historic event. “The American public’s interest in this case is beyond exaggeration,” the media companies argued.
But Goodman said a standing rule prohibits “all forms” of photography and electronic recording. “That is a broad prohibition,” Goodman ruled. “Moreover, allowing photographs would undermine the massive security arrangements put in place.”
-Bart Jansen
How to watch Donald Trump’s arraignment?
Unless you are inside the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. United States Courthouse in Miami, you will not be able to watch Trump’s arraignment.
Despite the historic nature of Trump’s arraignment and the intense public interest in the case, most Americans will not be permitted to watch the court proceedings live on Tuesday.
The judge presiding at Trump’s hearing declined on Monday to make an exception to a rule prohibiting live broadcast recording from the federal courthouse. Only 20 members of the media and the general public will be allowed to watch the arraignment in-person from the courtroom.
Inside the courthouse, an overflow viewing room will be provided for members of the public and the press who are not selected for one of the 20 seats in the courtroom.
But most Americans will not get to watch a former president face federal criminal charges for the first time in the country’s history.
-Miles J. Herszenhorn
What time is Donald Trump’s arraignment?
Donald Trump will appear in federal court in Miami today at 3 p.m. for the first hearing in a case related to his alleged mishandling of classified documents.
Trump arrived in Miami International Airport on Monday afternoon and spent the night at his golf resort in Doral.
Before the hearing this afternoon, Trump will surrender for pretrial services. It is still unclear if he will be fingerprinted and photographed by U.S. marshals.
-Miles J. Herszenhorn
What is a classified document?
A classified document includes information deemed sensitive by the government that may have a potential threat to national security if it is released in an unauthorized way. Most documents are classified for the purpose of national security.
There are different levels of classified information: Top secret, secret and confidential. Each level of classification ranks the severity of how leaked information could impact national security.
−Bart Jansen
Nikki Haley, Tim Scott are more critical of Trump post-indictment
Don’t look now, but a rising number of Donald Trump’s Republican opponents are starting to criticize him over the documents indictment.
Nikki Haley, who was low-key after the indictment news broke Thursday, told Fox News on Monday: “If this indictment is true, if what it says is actually the case, President Trump was incredibly reckless with our national security.”
Haley, like other Republicans, also wondered if a candidate with these kinds of legal problems could attract enough independents to win a general election.
Another South Carolina-based Republican presidential candidate, U.S. Tim Scott, has also become more critical of Trump in light of the criminal charges. It is a “serious case with serious allegations,” Scott told reporters during a campaign stop Monday.
−David Jackson
What does indictment mean?
An indictment is a formal charging document that’s used when it’s believed a person committed a crime. It includes charges against a person and should be filed before a case can move forward in a court, David Weinstein, a former federal and state prosecutor, previously told USA TODAY.
An indictment means a grand jury decided that there’s “more likely than not” enough evidence – based on testimony – to move forward with charging a person, Weinstein said. In a federal court, all cases proceed via indictment.
−Marina Pitofsky
Poll: Trump’s indictment is a liability
Donald Trump remains the lead horse in the Republican field as he faces his second indictment during the 2024 campaign.
But there are signs of fatigue among some right-leaning Americans.
A new USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll released Tuesday finds 34% of GOP and independent voters saying the former president’s legal problems makes them less likely to support him.
The same survey, however, does find 11% are more likely to back his bid as a result of the allegations. And a majority—51%—say it doesn’t matter.
−Phillip M. Bailey
Why did Trump keep the documents? Because he wanted to
The indictment sheds little light on Trump’s motive for keeping these classified documents even after they were subpoenaed, but plenty of people have theories.
While opponents of Trump suspect he wanted to sell the information, others offer a more prosaic reason: He wants to pretend he’s still president.
“He wants the trappings of the presidency around him,” presidential candidate Chris Christie told a CNN town hall. “And I think one of those trappings is these documents that he could wave around to people.”
Attorney Ty Cobb, the former White House Special Counsel, gave another reason Trump kept the documents: “He doesn’t think the rules apply to him.”
−David Jackson
Trump’s approval rating slightly up from April, poll finds
Donald Trump’s favorability among voters increased by 6 percentage points since April despite facing 37 charges over his handling of classified documents seized at his Florida home, a recent ABC News/Ipsos poll found.
The survey, conducted in the days immediately following Trump’s indictment, found that 31% of voters had a favorable impression of the ex-president while only 25% viewed Trump as favorable in April. Despite the slight increase in favorability, the majority of Americans, 56%, still view Trump unfavorably – slightly down from the 61% of voters who had an unfavorable impression of him.
Forty-eight percent of voters also said that Trump should have been charged with a crime related to the hundreds of classified documents Trump took with him from the White House after leaving office in 2021 while 37% said he should not be, the poll found.
The survey of 910 U.S. adults, taken June 9-10, has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.7 percentage points.
– Sarah Elbeshbishi
Trump facing more legal challenges, Republican challengers
With Trump’s legal challenges on the rise, he is also facing an increasing number of Republican challengers for the 2024 Republican nomination.
Nine Republicans have entered the race to dethrone Trump, but only some of the 2024 hopefuls have used Trump’s two indictments to criticize the Republican frontrunner.
Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie both have repeatedly slammed Trump over his legal woes. Others, like former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), only began to change their tune on Trump after his indictment was unsealed on Friday.
As a new USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll shows 34% of Republican and independent voters are less likely to support Trump after his indictment, the former president’s legal challenges will likely play a significant role throughout the 2024 campaign.
–Miles J. Herszenhorn
Read the Trump indictment:
Former President Donald Trump will appear in court on Tuesday where he is expected to plead not guilty to 37 federal charges related to his alleged mishandling of classified documents seized from his Florida resort, Mar-a-Lago.
Walt Nauta, Trump’s longtime personal aide and a former White House valet, also faces federal charges in the indictment.
Read below the 44-page indictment unsealed on Friday:
–Miles J. Herszenhorn
