Trump pledges to continue presidential race even if sentenced

Former US President Donald Trump reaffirmed on Friday that he will not withdraw his candidacy for the White House in case of conviction and sentencing in any of the ongoing criminal investigations against him.

Trump, aged 77, who is the front-runner in the Republican Party's primaries for the 2024 elections, was asked about federal charges and allegations he faces, after federal prosecutors added three criminal charges to the indictment against him, related to the secret document case.

In response to a question during an interview with right-wing host John Fredericks on radio, regarding whether he would suspend his campaign if he were convicted, Trump stated, "Absolutely not. There is nothing in the Constitution that says that."

He added, "Even the crazies on the extreme left say no, absolutely not, and that won't stop me (...) these people are sick. What they are doing is extremely horrifying."

Trump explained that former presidents, including Barack Obama and George W. Bush, have "taken documents," and he noted that his predecessors have engaged in similar behaviors to those crimes he is accused of committing.

"No one has gone through this. It's madness," he said.

Trump had already been charged in early June as part of this case. However, in a court document published on Thursday, federal prosecutors accused the former president of attempting to delete surveillance camera footage from his residence in Florida, in order to avoid them falling into the hands of investigators.

He and two of his aides are accused of asking an employee at Mar-a-Lago club to "delete surveillance camera footage to prevent the delivery of these images to the judiciary."

Trump also faces dozens of criminal charges in a case related to paying money to buy the silence of a pornographic star in New York, in addition to separate investigations at the state and federal levels for his attempts to overturn the 2020 elections.

In a significant development on Thursday in the document case, special prosecutor Jack Smith mentioned that Trump, who is scheduled to be tried at the peak of the election campaigns in March and May, requested a worker at his Florida home to destroy surveillance camera recordings to obstruct the work of investigators.

Trump is also accused of unlawfully retaining information related to national defense, after presenting a classified document to journalists at his golf club in New Jersey.

Trump's defiant interview came as he and his rival Ron DeSantis were preparing to appear on the same platform for the first time alongside all Republican candidates during the annual Lincoln dinner.

The Friday fundraising event is considered a prominent milestone in the early presidential campaigns, as DeSantis faces his own challenges.

The 44-year-old man has witnessed Trump's lead in the polls rise from 13 points in February to 34 points now, which is attributed to his failure to connect with voters and a series of missteps he has made.

DeSantis' campaign was forced to fire a staffer this week who promoted a video showing Nazi images. The Republican candidate also faced anger for suggesting choosing Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who promotes anti-vaccine conspiracy theories, to lead his public health policy.

His aides also announced the dismissal of a third of the campaign staff due to excessive spending. The Florida governor faced further outrage when he defended his new policy that includes teaching the benefits of slavery.

While Iowa and New Hampshire voters are set to choose their favorite Republican candidate within six months, most of the candidates are present in the two states to participate in daily events.

Among other speakers at the Lincoln dinner, Mike Pence, Trump's former vice president, who is ranked fourth in the polls behind businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, will also speak, as will former ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley and Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina.

DeSantis, who faced sharp criticism from Trump, said in an interview with SiriusXM radio set to be broadcast on Friday, that he is against the former president's trial.

He added, "I will do what is right for the country. I don't think it's good for the country to have a former president who is about 80 years old go to jail (...) I think the country wants a fresh start."



AFP