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From having his mugshot taken to apparently rejoining Twitter (or, as it is now called, X), Donald Trump has had a busy 24 hours.
The former US President Thursday appeared at an Atlanta jail, where he was booked on a wide variety of charges in relation to his alleged attempts to overturn his 2020 election defeat in Georgia. Speaking to reporters following the incident, the 77-year-old repeated that he is innocent of all charges. “What has taken place here is a travesty of justice,” he said, adding, “I did nothing wrong, and everybody knows it.”
Trump currently has four cases filed against him in relation to election interference. However, they are not likely to have any significant impact on his run for the Republican candidacy for the upcoming 2024 US Presidential elections, in which he is facing strong competition from the likes of Ron DeSantis, Vivek Ramaswamy, Nikki Haley and his former deputy Mike Pence.
Donald Trump, who arrived at Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport at around 7 pm local time Thursday evening, briefly met with his new lawyer Steven Sadow, and other advisors, before heading out to the Fulton County jail to surrender and be booked, reported US media.
Sadow, Trump's new lead criminal defense lawyer in Georgia who replaced his former attorney Drew Findling, is no stranger to high-profile cases. His clients include musicians like R&B performer Usher, rappers Sergio Kitchens (aka Gunna) and Rick Ross, among others, earning him the nickname#BillionDollarLawyer.
After arriving at Atlanta’s Fulton County jail, Trump's booking process was quite quick as his lawyers had already negotiated his consent bond agreement. Typically, when a defendant enters a jail, they are body-searched, handcuffed, fingerprinted and their mugshot is taken. In Trump's case, the first two steps were skipped, as is the case with high-profile defendants, reported CNN.
"It will be a more popular image than the Mona Lisa."
This was a Trump supporter's quip on the now-famous mugshot of the former president. Though several of his co-defendants in the case smiled or appeared relaxed when their mugshot was taken, Trump chose to go with a different look. The businessman-turned-politician wanted to look "defiant" and had discussed the pose with his aides, reported CNN. In the photo, he glares into the camera, his brow furrowed, his jaw clenched and his red tie knotted tightly.
Trump spent just under 20 minutes at the jail before taking the private jet back to his New Jersey golf course.
After the quick processing, he was released on a $200,000 bond. Other release conditions include not using social media to intimidate co-defendants and witnesses in the case, as per local media reports.
The former world leader has been booked as Inmate No: P01135809 at the Fulton County jail.
"White, Male, 6 foot 3 inches tall, 215 pounds," reads the record of arrest. It notes his eyes as blue and his hair as blonde or strawberry.
Trump continued to assert his innocence as he spoke to reporters before he departed for New Jersey.
"What has taken place here is a travesty of justice," he told reporters. "I did nothing wrong, and everybody knows it."
"We have every single right to challenge an election that we think is dishonest," he added.
Thursday also marked Trump's return to the microblogging platform X (or Twitter, as it was known). As you might remember, he was kicked off Twitter following the US Capitol riots in 2021 after he called the people who stormed the Capitol as "patriots", among other things.
Though his ban was revoked after Elon Musk's takeover of the company, Trump had remained inactive on the site, choosing to focus on his right-wing social media site 'Truth Social'.
Donald Trump's team, meanwhile, is using the attention generated by the booking to raise funds for the upcoming presidential campaign. Log on to his personal website, and the first thing you see is a banner titled "A Personal Note from President Donald J. Trump".
Along with a photo of the mugshot and a link for donations, the message reads: "Today, at the notoriously violent jail in Fulton County, Georgia, I was ARRESTED despite having committed NO CRIME. The American people know what’s going on. What has taken place is a travesty of justice and ELECTION INTERFERENCE. The Left wants to intimidate YOU out of voting for a political outsider who puts the American people FIRST. But today, I walked into the lion’s den with one simple message on behalf of our entire movement: I WILL NEVER SURRENDER OUR MISSION TO SAVE AMERICA. If you are doing poorly due to the sinister people in control of our country right now, don’t even think about donating! But if you can, please make a contribution to evict Crooked Joe Biden from the White House and SAVE AMERICA during this dark chapter in our nation’s history. Thank you and God bless you."
Trump has 18 co-defendants in the Georgia election interference case, many of whom have surrendered before the deadline (Aug 25).
The most high-profile of these is ex-New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who appeared before the court last day. "This case is a fight for our way of life," he told reporters, adding, "This indictment is a travesty."
Others named include Georgia bail bondsman Scott Hall, legal team members Sidney Powell, John Eastman, Jenna Ellis, and Robert Cheeley, former Georgia Republican Party Chairman David Shafer, Cathy Latham, Ray Smith III, Misty Hampton and Kenneth Chesebro, campaign members Mark Meadows, Jeffrey Clark and Michael Roman.
The case and the subsequent booking appear to have done little to dim Trump's fanbase. Dozens of supporters, waving Trump banners and American flags, jostled for a glimpse as Trump arrived at the jail. Among the Trump backers gathered outside was Georgia US Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, one of the former president's most loyal congressional allies.
Lyle Rayworth, 49, who is in the aviation industry in the Atlanta area, had been waiting near the jailhouse for 10 hours, since early on Thursday. "Yeah, I'm hoping he sees me waving the flags, showing support," Rayworth said as he awaited Trump's arrival. "He needs us." (Reuters)
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