Trump Drives Straight From Federal Arraignment To Miami Cuban Restaurant—As He Campaigns Off Classified Docs Charges

Topline

Former President Donald Trump stopped at a Cuban restaurant in Miami Tuesday, where he was greeted by throngs of supporters moments after pleading not guilty to federal charges—a bizarre scene that appears to underscore Trump’s commitment to continue his 2024 presidential campaign and downplay the seriousness of the charges against him.

Former President Donald Trump visits the Versailles restaurant in the Little Havana neighborhood of … [+] Miami after being arraigned at the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. United States Federal Courthouse on June 13, 2023. Trump pleaded not guilty to 37 federal charges including possession of national security documents after leaving office, obstruction, and making false statements. (Photo by Stephanie Keith/Getty Images)

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Key Facts

About 15 minutes after leaving court in downtown Miami, Trump visited Versailles, a historic Cuban restaurant that’s a well-known campaign stop for GOP candidates, where supporters sang “Happy Birthday” to him ahead of his 77th birthday on Wednesday.

Trump, promising “food for everyone,” was greeted by adoring fans, including retired Cuban-American UFC fighter Jorge Masvidal and a rabbi and nondenominational minister who prayed over the former president.

Less than an hour earlier, Trump surrendered to federal authorities, was arrested and pleaded not guilty to 37 felony charges accusing him of taking top-secret government records that contained national defense information with him to Mar-A-Lago and obstructing the government’s investigation after he was subpoenaed for the documents, charges that carry maximum prison sentences ranging from five to 20 years.

Trump retreated from the courthouse to a venue affiliated with some of his most loyal supporters: 60% of Republican Cuban-American voters in South Florida said in a 2022 poll they still support Trump, Florida International University’s Cuban Research Institute found.

In another move that underscores Trump’s desire to portray business-as-usual despite the law enforcement probes against him, he is set to deliver a speech from his Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club later Tuesday, and spent the weekend following his indictment on Thursday campaigning in Georgia and North Carolina.

Further Viewing

Crucial Quote

“Some birthday. Some birthday. We’ve got a government that’s out of control,” Trump said from Versailles.

Big Number

59%. That’s the percentage of GOP voters who said they would cast their ballots for Trump if the 2024 presidential election was held today, according to a Morning Consult poll (margin of error 2) taken Friday-Sunday. The results represent a four-point boost since the group’s poll taken a week earlier, before his indictment. Just 19% of GOP voters said they would vote for Gov. Ron DeSantis (Fla.).

Tangent

Previous polling suggests the federal indictment could have more of an impact on Trump’s campaign than his indictment in Manhattan Criminal Court earlier this year. An April Associated Press/NORC poll found 47% of voters overall view the documents case as more serious, compared to 41% for the Manhattan case, in which Trump is accused of falsifying business records tied to hush-money payments to cover up affair allegations ahead of the 2016 presidential election. A larger share of Republicans, 20%, also view his behavior in the documents case as illegal, versus 13% in the hush-money probe.

Key Background

Trump’s arraignment Tuesday marked the first time a former president has faced federal charges and Trump’s second indictment since announcing his third run for the White House. Trump voluntarily surrendered to authorities before he was arrested and booked into the system, though he did not have his mugshot taken nor was he placed in handcuffs, given his high profile and low flight risk. Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman released him on his own recognizance and ordered him not to have contact with other witnesses in the case, including his aide Walt Nauta, who was also charged in the case and still works for Trump. The case against Trump centers on 31 classified documents investigators say he stored amid dozens of boxes of personal records in various unsecured locations at Mar-A-Lago, including inside a bathroom, bedroom and the facility’s ballroom. Trump is also accused of obstructing the investigation by directing Nauta and his associates to move records, after the Justice Department subpoenaed him for the documents, and instructing his aides to lie to investigators about their whereabouts.

Chief Critic

Trump has repeatedly declared his innocence and has made the widely disputed statement that he could declassify records after leaving office, despite admitting on tape that he did not have the authority to do so, according to a particularly damning piece of evidence described in the federal indictment. Trump on Tuesday called the investigation a “witch hunt” and said it was “one of the saddest days in the history of our country,” building on his and his allies’ claims that the Justice Department investigation seeks to help President Joe Biden win re-election, though Biden has said he had no involvement in the probe. Trump has also vowed to continue his campaign despite the various criminal investigations against him.