The Arizona Republican Party (AZGOP) Executive Committee and the Maricopa County Republican Committee Executive Guidance Committee (MCRC) issued unanimous resolutions last week condemning the indictment of former President Donald Trump secured by Democratic New York County District Attorney Alvin Bragg. Other prominent Republicans in the state, including Kari Lake, also spoke up, denouncing the prosecution.
Both GOP resolutions contained similar language, strongly condemning the “political persecution” and “political witch hunt.” The AZGOP resolution emphasized that the Republican Party stands for “upholding justice and the rule of law,” and criticized the Democrats’ “blatant disregard for justice.” The statement concluded by condemning “the weaponization of the American justice system against political opponents of the current justice system.”
The MCRC resolution noted that “Trump has been the subject of an endless campaign of character assassination by political rivals,” and “is likely the most investigated living human being in world history.” The MCRC said that the investigation was “nothing more than a continued political witch hunt.”
Lake came out with a strong defense of Trump on Twitter. On April 4, she tweeted two words alongside a photo of Trump appearing in court for arraignment, “NOT GUILTY.” Another tweet said, “The only crime that @realDonaldTrump committed was humiliating @HillaryClinton. And if that was an actual crime then @BillClinton would have been locked up years ago.”
A third tweet from her stated, “Seven years of political persecution can all be traced back to election night in 2016. When @realDonaldTrump crashed their uniparty. They will never forgive him for that.”
Abe Hamadeh, who is challenging his narrow loss to Democrat Kris Mayes for attorney general, shared an article from American Greatness on Twitter and quoted from it on April 8, “What does it say about a government that is willing to be so nakedly repressive? It says that the ruler no longer cares to cloud tyranny in legitimacy.” The article was titled “Trump, Martyr of the Republic?” and said, “This phony ‘indictment’ is an unprecedented attack on the American tradition of self-rule.”
Hamadeh also shared an article on Twitter entitled “Trump’s Real Crime is Opposing Empire.” The author, professor Christian Parenti, stated, “The Trump arrest is an act of sheer desperation, based on a tortured legal theory that seeks to turn mislabeled payments into federal election meddling.”
Another tweet from Hamadeh declared, “Americans faith in our institutions and the rule of law is collapsing right before our eyes,” with an image of a banana, signifying a banana republic.
Mark Finchem, who also continues to challenge his election loss to Democratic Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, tweeted, “Outrageous abuse of power” along with a video from Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton entitled “Trump Indictment is Election Rigging.”
Another tweet from Finchem said, “The ongoing criminal enterprise known as #UniParty ultimately will fail, and they deserve no quarter,” next to a meme featuring Trump walking into his arraignment, which said, “They are going after him because he stands between them and us — Trump 2024.”
Representative Paul Gosar (R-AZ-04) said in a statement, “I will have more to say about the bogus charges leveled against President Trump in the days to come but it’s abundantly clear that the Biden regime occupying the White House and systematically killing America is most afraid of President Donald J. Trump. Period. This is third world politics from a George Soros-funded district attorney who must be investigated, beginning with Congress. Having nothing to do with the law, this is a clear and brazen political persecution. I proudly stand with President Trump.”
In his statement, Representative Andy Biggs (R-AZ-03) said, “Never in my life have I seen America’s institutions as weaponized against conservatives as they are today. A Leftist District Attorney funded and selected by George Soros has elevated a misdemeanor stemming from a minuscule accounting error into a felony due to his opposition to the former president’s politics. Instead of focusing on the rampant crime in America’s largest city, this rogue District Attorney is abusing his power for political gain. He is further reinforcing that America maintains a two-tiered justice system towards conservatives.”
He went on, “Bragg committed prosecutorial misconduct by reportedly hiding hundreds of pages of exculpatory evidence from this grand jury. I will use every leverage I have to ensure that every single federal dollar is rescinded from this office and to restore impartiality in our courts. George Soros and his hand-picked minion will long live in infamy for their corrupt bastardization of our justice system.”
Representative Debbie Lesko (R-AZ-08) issued her own statement. “It is a sad day for our nation,” she said. “Democrats will stop at nothing to go after President Trump. This case is weak and yet another political witch hunt to unjustly attack him. This is an egregious abuse of power from liberal New York District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who campaigned on going after President Trump. Bragg has brought trumped-up charges that baselessly claim there was intent to commit another crime without naming that crime to turn these charges into felonies. The Federal Election Commission and federal prosecutors at the Department of Justice already decided not to pursue this case. This is a sham indictment meant to score political points and weaponize our judicial system to help Democrats win another election.”
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Rachel Alexander is a reporter at The Arizona Sun Times and The Star News Network. Follow Rachel on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Donald Trump and Kari Lake” by The Kari Lake.
