Trump’s Maga army fails to materialise outside of Miami federal court for ex-president’s arraignment
After he was indicted for the second time in three months, former president Donald Trump stoked fears of possible violence by urging his supporters to show up at the Miami federal courthouse where he made his first appearance on Tuesday. Judging from the turnout, most of his supporters didn’t seem to be listening. More than two years ago, the twice-impeached, now twice-indicted ex-president summoned a riotous mob of supporters to Washington, DC, many of whom assaulted police officers and sacked the US Capitol in hopes of preventing Congress from certifying his loss to President Joe Biden. That day, Mr Trump spoke to a crowd of tens of thousands who’d gathered near the White House to hear him denounce the electoral process that had, four years earlier, made him the leader of the free world. Now, with the former president facing state criminal charges in his former home state of New York and federal charges in his adopted home state of Florida, his ability to manifest a violent mob appears to have been attenuated since his exit from the White House. To be sure, law enforcement officials in Miami appeared to have made preparations for the possibility that protesters could show up en masse on Tuesday. On Monday, Miami mayor Francis Suarez told reporters that there would be plans in place to “make sure that everyone has a right to peacefully express themselves and exercise their constitutional rights” in “an obviously peaceful manner” and said he hoped anyone who showed up to protest “would be peaceful”. City officials had reportedly prepared for as many as 50,000 protesters to pack the area surrounding the downtown courthouse. But in the end, the number of Trump superfans who came to support the ex-president looked to be only a few hundred. The paltry crowd didn’t appear to be organized in any manner, though they did disrupt proceedings outside the building by blocking traffic at times. One anti-Trump protester, a man called Domenic Santana, even went to far as to temporarily block Mr Trump’s motorcade as the ex-president attempted to leave after court proceedings. Mr Santana, who had been walking around the building clad in an old-time prisoner costume while carrying a sign that read “Lock Him Up,” spoke to The Independent earlier in the day about his reasons for coming to the courthouse. “Hopefully, someday he has to be locked up. He should have been locked up a long, long time ago. He’s gotten away with it. He’s the master of spin, either graduate from New York School of Rats and he has a master’s degree and he knows how to spin it. He’s going to spin it on this one. ‘It’s political. It’s because I’m running for president that they’re accusing me,’” he said. “He has his case made up. He doesn’t need lawyers to defend him. He already knows the spin. Before the election, ‘Oh, if I lose it’s because of fraud’. That day he lost – ‘Oh, fraud, fraud fraud’. His Attorney General – ‘There was no fraud’. ‘You’re fired,’ the next day. Come on. Enough is enough,” Mr Santana added. The ersatz prisoner was one of a few colourful characters who spent the day wandering around the massive courthouse and adjacent buildings, either in support or in opposition to the man who was arraigned there on Tuesday. One pro-Trump performer, a man who identified himself only as “Uncle Jams,” rolled about the courthouse plaza on a hoverboard while singing pro-Trump and anti-Biden ditties. Another group of well-known Trump supporters, members of the “Blacks for Trump” group, arrived on the scene early in the morning, led by founder and Miami native Maurice Woodside, also known as Michael the Black Man. Mr Woodside, who gained some measure of notoriety during Mr Trump’s rise to the presidency due to his constant presence at the ex-president’s campaign rallies, led a group of maybe 30 people in identical “Blacks for Trump” shirts, who walked around together and intermittently chanted the ex-president’s name. At times, the scene outside the courthouse took on a circus atmosphere, with pro-Trump protesters mingling among scores of tents belonging to news organisations, who’d sent correspondents from all over the world to cover the spectacle of the ex-president’s court appearance. There was, however, one more ominous moment earlier in the day, when Federal Protective Service officers and Miami police cordoned off the area directly in front of the courthouse while they investigated what they described as a suspicious package discovered in a local television station’s satellite truck. After roughly an hour, officers signaled that there was no danger, and reporters returned to their work while awaiting the former president’s arrival. Throughout all the chaos, Miami residents who live and work in the downtown area milled about the courthouse plaza as they went about their day. One such city denizen who spoke to The Independent but declined to state his name, said he thought the ex-president could have avoided the jeopardy posed by the case against him had he just followed the law. “I don’t know why he did it … I read the indictment and he would’ve been in a good place right now if he’d just given it all back when asked,” he said. The Miami resident, who was out walking his American Bulldog, Don Julio, commented that there appeared to be far more reporters than protesters. Don Julio, who at first seemed slightly annoyed by the interruption to his daily routine, did not comment on the allegations against Mr Trump, but instead sat down next to this reporter to accept a belly rub before looking out at the courthouse plaza, a broad smile on his face. Read More Trump indictment - live: Trump greets fans with free food after arrest, not guilty plea at Miami arraignment Clashes break out at Trump arraignment courthouse after ‘suspicious package’ sparks police response Chaos erupts as protester in prison garb jumps in front of Trump motorcade Ivanka and Jared split over attending Trump 2024 launch – follow live Why was Donald Trump impeached twice during his first term? Four big lies Trump told during his 2024 presidential announcement
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'AGT' Season 18: Who is Ahren Belisle? Mute and handicapped comedian clears audition round
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Rob Page welcomes break for Brennan Johnson ahead of Wales’ Euro 2024 qualifiers
Wales boss Rob Page has welcomed Brennan Johnson getting a late-season breather at Nottingham Forest ahead of Euro 2024 qualifying duty. Johnson has made over 50 appearances for the third successive season, featuring in every one of Forest’s 38 Premier League games as Steve Cooper’s side secured their top-flight status. But the 22-year-old forward appeared jaded in the closing weeks of the campaign and was dropped to the bench for two of Forest’s final three games. “You have to manage the pressure on your players and it’s probably not the worst thing that he’s found himself out of the team for the last few games,” Page said ahead of Wales’ Euro 2024 home qualifier against Armenia on Friday. “Because he scored so many goals, and because he is a constant threat – one of the best counter-attacking footballers in the Premier League – he set a precedent. “But you can get a level of inconsistency of performance with your players and it certainly won’t have harmed him in any way to have missed a few games at Forest. “He has to manage that when he gets a little dip in form.” Johnson scored eight goals in his first Premier League campaign and is a key player for Wales following Gareth Bale’s retirement in January. He missed the start of the qualifying campaign in March through injury and was the subject of a club-versus-country row, with Page suggesting Forest had not done enough to get Johnson fit for international duty. “You are always going to miss your best players, but we had to ask others to step up to the plate and the two performances against Croatia and Latvia were outstanding,” said Page, whose squad have been together at a Portugal training camp. “To finish off the Latvia game with the highest percentage possession we’ve had in the last five years shows we’ve got rid of the disappointment of the World Cup. “The players are embracing what we’re asking them to do moving forward and it suits the players. They also enjoy playing that way.” Page admits Wales need to sharpen their attacking play for a double-header with Armenia and Turkey after opening up in March with a 1-1 draw in Croatia and a 1-0 home victory over Latvia. He said: “While I was happy with the Latvia performance and how we controlled the game, that final detail at the top of the pitch is where we need to improve. “Having Brennan back fit, and Daniel James, Harry Wilson and David Brooks available is only going to help us achieve that. “With the personnel we’ve got, we can have two or three different formations without any problem. “The game plan might change within a game, but having players like Brennan will give us the opportunity to get higher up the pitch and score more goals. “We’ve got some good players and the problem now is finding out how to get them all into the same team.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Ali McCann loving international life under Northern Ireland boss Michael O’Neill Brooks Koepka ready to ‘enjoy the chaos’ as he targets yet another major title Andy Murray left shaken by ‘heartbreaking’ Nottingham incident
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QUOTES- Reactions to Donald Trump's arrest, arraignment in classified documents case
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Chaos erupts as protester in prison garb jumps in front of Trump motorcade
Chaos erupted in Miami after a protester jumped in front of former President Donald Trump’s motorcade as he left the federal courthouse after pleading not guilty to the 37 counts against him in connection to his alleged mishandling of national defence information. In an interview with The Independent before the incident took place, the protester identified himself as Domenic Santana. Speaking about why he was at the court, he said: “Hopefully, someday he has to be locked up. He should have been locked up a long, long time ago. He's gotten away with it. He's the master of spin, a graduate from the New York School of Rats and he has a master's degree and he knows how to spin it. He's going to spin it on this one. ‘It's political. It's because I'm running for president that they're accusing me.’” “He has his case made up. He doesn't need lawyers to defend him. He already knows the spin. Before the election, ‘Oh, if I lose it’s because of fraud’. That day he lost – ‘Oh, fraud, fraud fraud’. His Attorney General – ‘There was no fraud’. ‘You're fired,’ the next day. Come on. Enough is enough,” Mr Santana added. Footage from the scene appeared to show Mr Santana being tackled to the ground and arrested. Earlier on Tuesday, Mr Santana told the Sun Sentinel that supporters of Mr Trump “came for me. They were calling me a communist. Trump is a rat who graduated from the school of rats. He should have been locked up a long, long time ago”. Mr Santana is a Cuban-American retiree, according to the Palm Beach Post. He said he came to the court to confront Mr Trump’s “cult-like” following. “These charges are just the beginning of his lies.” On Monday evening, police separated Mr Santana from the crowd following a confrontation with supporters of the former president. Mr Santana, who lives in Miami, showed up at the courthouse the next day in the same old-school prison outfit and carrying his “Lock him up” sign. “He should have been locked up a long time ago,” he reiterated, according to the Miami New Times. Read More Trump indictment — live: Trump pleads not guilty in classified documents case at Miami court arraignment Trump supporters attack Miami’s Republican mayor outside Trump arraignment Clashes break out at Trump arraignment courthouse after ‘suspicious package’ sparks police response Ivanka and Jared split over attending Trump 2024 launch – follow live Why was Donald Trump impeached twice during his first term? Four big lies Trump told during his 2024 presidential announcement
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AMD Preps GPU to Challenge Nvidia's Grip on the Generative AI Market
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Kylian Mbappe won't return to PSG after next season
Kylian Mbappe won't return to PSG after next season
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Cormac McCarthy, among America's greatest authors, dies at 89
Cormac McCarthy, long considered one of America's greatest writers for his violent and bleak depictions of the United States and its borderlands in novels like "Blood Meridian," "The Road" and "All the Pretty Horses," died on Tuesday, according to his Penguin Random House publisher Alfred A. Knopf. He was 89.
1970-01-01 08:00
