Donald Trump has claimed he is the victim of election interference, as he condemned New York District Attorney Alvin Bragg for bringing criminal charges against him hours after his arraignment.
The former US president delivered an address to a crowd of some 500 people at his Mar-a-Lago estate ballroom in Florida after flying in from New York.
In his first comments since being charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records, the 76-year-old said “he never thought anything like this could happen in America”.
“The only crime I have committed is to fearlessly defend our nation from those who seek to destroy it,” he said.
He said the US “is going to hell”, adding that even people “who are not big fans” of him have said this “should not be happening”.
Trump claimed what he is facing is “election interference” and claims “a local racist district attorney in Atlanta” is trying to “do everything” in their power to indict him.
“This fake case was brought only to interfere with the upcoming 2024 election and it should be dropped immediately,” he said.
What are the charges Donald Trump faces? Former president pleads not guilty to 34 felony counts
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Donald Trump pictured in New York court as he pleads not guilty to 34 felony counts
Earlier on Tuesday, Trump personally pleaded not guilty to all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records and conspiracy for his alleged role in hush money payments to two women towards the end of his 2016 presidential campaign – becoming the first former US president to face criminal charges.
Following the hearing in a New York court on Tuesday, he said “there is no case” when it comes to his indictment and “nothing was done illegally”.
Trump also accused New York district attorney Alvin Bragg of shutting the city down and bringing in “38,000 NYPD officers” in a statement on social media site Truth Social.
Latest updates: Charges against Trump unsealed; follow live coverage
The allegations relate to him falsifying business records “in order to conceal damaging information and unlawful activity from American voters before and after the 2016 election”, according to prosecutors.
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What are the charges Donald Trump faces?
The Republican is accused of using a “catch and kill” scheme to identify, buy, and bury negative information about him to boost his electoral prospects.
Prosecutors say he then went to great lengths to hide this conduct, with dozens of false entries in business records to conceal criminal activity, including attempts to violate state and federal election laws.
Setting out the case against Trump, Mr Bragg said the former president “repeatedly made false statements on New York business records” and caused others to make false statements.
