Many members of the United States Republican Party have in recent hours sharply criticized the search of former President Donald Trump’s Florida mansion by the FBI, the investigative agency of the US federal police. It was the first time in the history of the country that the police searched the private residence of a former president: For this reason too, the Republicans are protesting very vigorously against what they believe is an attempt to weaken Trump and the party. and a re-nomination of the former president in the 2024 presidential election.
Republican reactions have been very harsh and often quite idiosyncratic, fueled by Trump himself, who denounced the search as a very serious interference. The party’s almost unanimous support is also taken as a sign that Trump’s influence on American conservative politics remains very strong.
The FBI has not disclosed the reasons for the search, although it is most likely related to some confidential documents Trump brought to the mansion at the end of his tenure as president. Immediately after the search, dozens of Trump and Republican Party supporters gathered in front of the mansion (dubbed the Mar-a-Lago) and began holding placards and slogans to protest against the FBI, the Justice Department and the Democrats and President Joe Biden.
Some prominent Republicans very close to Trump have speculated about future legal action against Merrick Garland, US Attorney General and head of the Justice Department, who was appointed by Joe Biden, who multiple sources say personally authorized the search. Kevin McCarthy, leader of the Republican minority in the House of Representatives, made this very clear, writing on Twitter that if Republicans regain control of the House after the midterm elections, they will immediately launch an investigation into the department: “Keep all your documents and make no commitments,” he wrote to Garland on Twitter.
Another well-known Republican, like Florida Senator Marco Rubio, compared the FBI raid to the maneuvers of a “Third World fascist dictatorship”.
Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican congresswoman known for her extremist and conspiracy theories, who tweeted about a Democrat conspiracy against Trump and called for a funding cut to the FBI, was even more colorful.
DEFINANCE THE FBI!
– Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@RepMTG) August 9, 2022
More moderate Republicans like ex-Vice President Mike Pence, who could run for the Republican presidential primary by 2024 and has long been considered a far cry from Trump, have condemned the search.
Democrats have apparently denied all allegations, reiterating that Trump has a presumption of innocence and that the Justice Department has every right to conduct its own investigation. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also recalled how the current head of the FBI was appointed by Trump.
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Reactions show that Trump is still at the heart of the Republican Party and that most lawmakers are still on his side. It is also a sign of how both the potential investigation that will emerge from the search, and the many others Trump is involved in, could be complicated and hampered by the very harsh public mobilizations by Trump and his people, which is what indeed, according to many analysts, constitute one of the former President’s main defense strategies.
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