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Former U.S. President Donald Trump continues to defy expectations as he surges ahead of other Republican contenders for the presidential nomination despite multiple indictments against him — and with words of support from some of his own rivals. As he was indicted again Tuesday over his attempts to overturn the 2020 election, VOA’s Anita Powell looks at the unprecedented path of the former president.
Content TypePackage
LanguageEnglish
Transcript/Script((PLAYBOOK SLUG: US Politics - Trump
HEADLINE: Trump Indicted Over Attempts to Overturn 2020 Election
TEASER: Trump alleges political persecution amid yet another indictment, over 2020 election subversion efforts
PUBLISHED: 8/1/2023 at
BYLINE: Anita Powell
CONTRIBUTOR:
DATELINE: Washington
VIDEOGRAPHER: AP, AFP, Zoom
VIDEO EDITOR:
SCRIPT EDITORS: Holly Franko, Sharon Shahid
VIDEO SOURCE (S): AP, AFP, Zoom
PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _X_ RADIO __
TRT:
VID APPROVED BY:
TYPE:
EDITOR NOTES:
))
((Intro:))
[[Former U.S. President Donald Trump continues to defy expectations as he surges ahead of other Republican contenders for the presidential nomination despite multiple indictments against him — and with words of support from some of his own rivals. As he was indicted again Tuesday over his attempts to overturn the 2020 election, VOA’s Anita Powell looks at the unprecedented path of the former president.]]
((Establish Trump from AP-4446832))
((NARRATOR))
Donald Trump.
Love him or hate him — for many Americans, there seems to be no in-between.
The former president has spun his serious federal indictments to his political advantage, claiming the charges are politically motivated.
((SOT, English, AP-4446832))
((Donald Trump, Former US President))
"These are ridiculous indictments, and all they're doing is hoping for massive election interference. That's all they want to do. They want to damage the leading candidate.”
((Trump campaigning; AP-4446756 ))
((NARRATOR))
With every new indictment, he gets a boost in the polls, giving him a double-digit lead in the Republican race for the nomination.
((Haley from AFP-V000_33DT4EW))
And surprisingly, Trump’s many,
((Ramaswamy from AFP-V000_33DT4EW))
many
((DeSantis from AP-4444674))
many presidential challengers
((DeSantis campaigning 4444674))
— including his closest challenger, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis — say they agree with him.
((establish McC from AP-4447012))
As do some prominent Republicans in Congress:
[[Radio: Like House Speaker Kevin McCarthy]]
((SOT, English, AP-4447012))
((Kevin McCarthy, House Speaker))
“They [DOJ] go after anybody who's running against the president, it seems as though, and if you go up in the polls, you're more likely to get indicted.”
((trump indictment pages, AP-4447206))
((NARRATOR))
Others direct their ire at special counsel Jack Smith, who led the investigation that produced Tuesday’s indictment
((Trump Jan 6 broll AP-4447200))
over Trump’s attempts to hold on to power after losing the 2020 election.
[[Radio: Georgia Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene]]
((SOT, English, AP-4445047))
((Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Republican))
"What Jack Smith is doing, is the weaponized government, and he's weaponizing the Department of Justice against President Trump in a complete lie about President Trump and January 6.”
((return to R’s campaigning, from AFP-V000_33DT4EW))
((NARRATOR))
This support, says University of Texas history professor Jeremi Suri, may be in the candidate’s self-interest. He spoke to VOA from Austin, via Zoom.
((SOT, English, Zoom, from 2:40 in file, here:https://app.frame.io/player/0beb1a4f-862e-41d6-94b2-b6237c0797fa ))
((Jeremi Suri, University of Texas at Austin)) ((zoom))
“The support that Trump is receiving from other Republican candidates and from other Republican officeholders comes from the fact that the Republican primary system is a messed-up system. It's a system that gives a small group of Republicans who turn out in these primaries — sometimes they're in caucuses, sometimes they're in voting primaries — they turn out, and they don't represent the party. But they do provide the key votes in the primaries that determine who will be the nominee of the party.“
((Establish KJP from AFP-V000_33PC9AV))
((NARRATOR))
The White House has repeatedly said it has no role in Trump’s legal woes.
((short shot of Biden while presidenting: AP-4446710))
((NARRATOR))
While this situation may not be Biden’s fault, this is a problem. Suri says the president needs to do three things: One, protect people’s access to the vote. Two, make sure the justice system can do its work. Third, he says,
((SOT, English, Zoom, from 11:00 in file, here:https://app.frame.io/player/0beb1a4f-862e-41d6-94b2-b6237c0797fa ))
((Jeremi Suri, University of Texas at Austin)) ((zoom))
“Biden should be educating the public.”
((Biden shilling Bidenomics: AP-4445437))
((NARRATOR))
He has just over a year to do that before America votes.
((Anita Powell, VOA News, Washington))
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
NetworkVOA
Embargo DateAugust 1, 2023 22:17 EDT
BylineAnita Powell
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English
