Former President Donald Trump is using the criminal charges against him as a way to claim that there is an attempt to interfere with the 2024 election, according to recent reports. Trump’s allegations have been made without evidence and have been criticized by many. However, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is directing his party’s committee chairs to investigate if federal funds are being used to interfere in elections with politically motivated prosecutions.
This is not the first time Trump has made such claims. He declared his latest bid for the White House shortly after the November midterms in 2018 as an effort to head off the various probes swirling around him. Trump repeated the claims in at least 20 social media posts since March 3. However, there is no credible evidence to back up Trump’s allegations, and critics warn that he is sowing suspicions of fraud that could damage democracy.
Trump is facing several investigations, with the Manhattan District Attorney’s case being the most prominent. In that case, prosecutors allege that Trump falsified business records at his company to pay off porn actress Stormy Daniels to keep a potentially damaging story quiet while he was campaigning. Trump is also facing legal jeopardy from other investigations, including two related to his attempts to interfere with the 2020 election.
The Fulton County, Georgia, prosecutors are investigating Trump’s January 2021 call to the state’s top elections officer, in which he asked him to “find” enough votes to declare him the winner there. The US Justice Department has also launched a federal special counsel probe into Trump’s attempts to overturn his loss in the 2020 presidential election. Additionally, Trump is enmeshed in a federal special counsel investigation of his handling of classified documents found at his Florida estate.
Trump’s claims of election interference are being criticized by many, including Harvard political scientist Steven Levitsky, who said that Trump is behaving like a politician in the legal crosshairs. Several former presidents of other countries, when prosecuted, have claimed it was a plot to foil their future elections, according to Levitsky. Joanna Lydgate, CEO of States United Action, which tracks politicians who embrace Trump’s election lies, has warned that Trump’s actions are dangerous because of what happened on January 6th.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has responded to questions about the timing of the case, saying that he brings cases when they’re ready. Critics warn that Trump’s allegations of election interference could damage democracy and sow distrust among the American people.