Former US President Donald Trump was arraigned in a Manhattan court on Tuesday, pleading not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in the first degree in relation to a hush-money case involving adult film star Stormy Daniels. Lawmakers, including both allies and critics of Trump, have issued statements regarding the arraignment. US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy accused Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg of weaponizing the federal justice process, while senior Republican leader Mitt Romney criticized what he called Bragg’s overreach, which he said sets a dangerous precedent. Representative Adam Schiff described the arraignment as a somber moment in the life of the country, emphasizing that even the most powerful are held accountable and nobody is above the law. Florida Senator Marco Rubio commented on Twitter that it was a bad day for all of them and they would regret it for a long time. Congresswoman Madeleine Dean tweeted that no one should be above the law, and Trump’s arraignment was another first, all of his own making. Meanwhile, Trump himself, speaking from his Mar-A-Lago property in Florida, said he never thought anything like this could happen in America, and that the only crime he had committed was to fearlessly defend the nation from those who seek to destroy it.
