Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg sent an email to his staff Saturday saying he would not “tolerate attempts to intimidate our office” after Donald Trump put out a rallying cry to his supporters ahead of his possible arrest.
The progressive DA’s memo comes hours after former President Donald Trump blasted Bragg’s office as “CORRUPT AND POLITICAL” and urged his followers to protests his arrest, which Trump predicted would be on Tuesday.
“Our law enforcement partners will ensure that any specific or credible threats against the office will be fully investigated and that the proper safeguards are in place so all 1,600 of us have a secure work environment,” Bragg told his office, according to a leaked email, obtained by journalist Breanna Morello.
“In the meantime, as with all of our investigations, we will continue to apply the law evenly and fairly and speak openly only when appropriate,” Bragg wrote. “We do not tolerate attempts to intimidate our office or threaten the rule of law in New York.”
On Saturday morning, Trump took to his Truth Social platform to announce that he will be arrested on Tuesday.
”THE FAR & AWAY LEADING REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE & FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, WILL BE ARRESTED ON TUESDAY OF NEXT WEEK. PROTEST, TAKE OUR NATION BACK!” he roared in an all caps.
“THEY’RE KILLING OUR NATION AS WE SIT BACK & WATCH. WE MUST SAVE AMERICA!PROTEST, PROTEST, PROTEST!!!.” he wrote in a follow-up message.
Trump is facing possible indictment over a $130,000 hush money payment he allegedly made to porn star Stormy Daniels in 2016.
Daniels claims she had an affair with Trump in 2006, which Trump has repeatedly denied.
Trump would become the first president in US history to ever face criminal charges after leaving office if he is indicted.
Former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and other Democrats denounced Trump’s calls to protest his arrest as “reckless.”
“The former president’s announcement this morning is reckless: doing so to keep himself in the news & to foment unrest among his supporters,” Pelosi tweeted. “He cannot hide from his violations of the law, disrespect for our elections and incitements to violence.”
Trump’s “goal is acts of violence in his name,” California Rep. Eric Swalwell echoed. “And we must be prepared to protect against it.”
Trump’s former attorney and fixer Michael Cohen, who served three years in prison after pleading guilty to violating federal campaign finance laws in connection to the payments in 2018, told The Post on Saturday that Trump’s Post is “eerily similar” to his battle cry prior to the January 6th insurrection; including calling for protest.
“By doing so, Donald is hoping to rile his base, witness another violent clash on his behalf and profit from it by soliciting contributions.”
Many Republicans have jumped to Trump’s defense, including Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy who called for an “immediate” congressional investigation into a “politically motivated prosecution.”
“Here we go again — an outrageous abuse of power by a radical DA who lets violent criminals walk as he pursues political vengeance against President Trump,” McCarthy posted.
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