Former President Donald Trump said Sunday that he had “every right” to interfere in the 2020 election, even as he faces two criminal cases related to those allegations. On Monday, Kamala Harris’ campaign claimed the comments were evidence that Trump believed he was “above the law.”
In an interview with Fox News that aired Sunday, Trump went on a lengthy tirade about the Justice Department and its treatment of him, accusing him of being a target. Trump was surprised that the criminal charges did nothing but boost his poll numbers, because, he suspected, his supporters didn’t believe them in the first place.
“Whoever heard that you were indicted for interfering with a presidential election, when you had every right to be indicted, you get indicted, and your polls go up?” Trump said. “When people get indicted, your polls go down. But it was so, so much nonsense.”
Last week, Trump was indicted again in his efforts to overturn his loss in the 2020 election. He is accused of multiple plots, including attempting to disenfranchise voters in certain states and influencing the outcome of the election by repeatedly claiming it was stolen, even though he knew the claims were false. Authorities say Trump’s false claims helped fuel the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. He faces similar election interference charges in Fulton County, Georgia.
On Monday, Harris campaign spokesperson Sarafina Chitika criticized Trump’s comments, saying they were another example of the “chaos, fear and division” Americans experienced under Trump.
“Everything Donald Trump promised during the campaign — from ‘ending’ the Constitution to jailing his political opponents to promising to rule as a dictator on ‘day one’ — makes it clear he believes he is above the law. Now Trump claims he had ‘every right’ to interfere in the 2020 election. He did not,” Chitika said in a statement.
The Supreme Court in July granted presidents broad immunity from prosecution if their conduct is related to official acts. Last week’s new indictment was written in a way that takes the new ruling into account.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
