Mark Esper, who was the defence secretary in Trump administration, expressed concern over the revelations, emphasising that no one is above the law…reports Asian Lite News
Days after Donald Trump’s extensive indictment on 37 counts, prominent Republicans, including presidential hopefuls Mike Pence and Asa Hutchinson, voiced criticism over the former president’s mishandling of classified information.
Their remarks came during the first round of major political talk shows since Trump pleaded not guilty to the charges related to retaining sensitive government documents. The documents, which Trump took with him upon leaving the White House, were allegedly concealed to impede investigators from retrieving them.
This Sunday, Pence stated he could not defend the alleged actions, while Hutchinson went further, deeming the allegations “serious and disqualifying”, suggesting Trump should withdraw from the 2024 race.
Mark Esper, who was the defence secretary in Trump administration, expressed concern over the revelations, emphasising that no one is above the law.
Meanwhile, Pence reserved judgment until Trump’s day in court, while questioning why some competitors presume his guilt in the Republican primary.
Trump faces 37 charges in the case — 31 of whom are about willful retention documents pertaining to national defence, including one that is about the “nuclear weaponry of the US”, according to the indictment.
Trump’s aide Walt Nauta has also been charged in the indictment which alleges the two men were involved in a conspiracy to hinder the federal probe.
This was the first time in US history that a former President is facing federal crime charges. He was charged in April in a case brought against him by New York state for payment of hush money to an adult film star who has claimed to have had an affair with Trump in 2005.
Trump faces another investigation, which is currently underway in the state of Georgia for allegedly trying to overturn the outcome of the 2020 presidential election in the state.
A fourth case might arise from federal investigations into the January 6 riots in 2020, when Trump’s supporters tried to prevent a joint session of the US Congress from certifying Joe Biden as the winner of the 2020 election.
After his court appearance, Trump had slammed the administration of President Joe Biden over his indictment, calling his predecessor “a corrupt sitting president.”
Trump said to a crowd of supporters, “Today we witnessed the most evil and heinous abuse of power in the history of our country,” adding, “Very sad thing to watch, a corrupt sitting president had his top political opponent arrested on fake and fabricated charges of which he and numerous other presidents would be guilty, right in the middle of a presidential election in which he’s losing very badly.”