RIOTOUS: Trump declares “I’ll never surrender,” expects arrest on Tuesday

RIOTOUS: Trump declares "I'll never surrender," expects arrest on Tuesday

Donald Trump, who called upon his supporters for “wild” protests on the day Congress met to solemnize his 2020 election loss, is calling for protests again on the day of his expected arrest.

In 2021, this led to violence and destruction on January 6th, and, in a missive to supporters, Trump — or, at least his fundraising arm — says he’ll never surrender.

Trump blasted the Manhattan District Attorney, George Soros, and Democrats, all in a two-part all-caps rant on his social media platform Truth Social.

Trump touched on some familiar tropes and misspellings, including the stolen (or “stollen”) election, open borders (“boarders”), and leaks from the prosecutor’s office — though he’s the one publicly releasing his (alleged) arrest date.

While he could be indicted in any of several cases currently in progress — including for documents illegally taken and stored at Mar-a-Lago and for election interference in Georgia — these expected charges stem from alleged financial crimes in hush money payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels to keep her from speaking publicly about an illicit extramarital affair.

He says the arrest is scheduled for Tuesday, and, though there’s no official confirmation of this, law enforcement has reportedly shared with conservative media that they had been contacted to coordinate for the indictment to hit sometime next week.

In the missive, Trump also called on his fans to protest and “take our nation back” — a directive that could easily be read as a call to riots or violent revolution, especially in light of the January 6th attack following similar language.

Meanwhile, a fundraising email linked potential donors to a WinRed page asking for more money, promising, “I will never surrender,” and telling supporters, “I’m not giving up now – and I know you aren’t either.”

A section of that page can be seen below.

His two social media posts did not address whether he’ll cooperate with law enforcement.

The following excerpt is edited for clarity, but the original can be seen in the screenshots below.

“Now illegal leaks from a corrupt and highly political Manhattan District Attorney’s office…indicate that..the far and away leading Republican candidate and former President of the United States of America will be arrested on Tuesday of next week. Protest, take our nation back!”

Despite his call for protests — and the “will not surrender” promise in the grift message — Trump’s attorney, Joe Tacopina, says that he will not refuse to surrender, and that “there won’t be a standoff at Mar-a-Lago,” according to The New York Daily News.

The NYPD and the Attorney General’s office have met to coordinate and address security concerns, though it is not yet clear whether the former president will be indicted at his Mar-a-Lago home or will travel to New York to surrender himself.

[Image via Donald Trump/Truth Social]
[Image via Donald Trump/Truth Social]
 

Stephanie Bazzle

Steph Bazzle is a news writer who covers politics and theocracy, always aiming for a world free from extremism and authoritarianism. Follow Steph on Twitter @imjustasteph. Sign up for all of her stories to be delivered to your inbox here: