Top Republican allies and rivals of former U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday denounced his indictment as a politically motivated attempt to derail his 2024 White House bid.
Kevin McCarthy, the top Republican in the House of Representatives and second in line to the Presidency, and others lashed out at Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, a Democrat, who pushed the criminal inquiry against Mr. Trump.
"Bragg has irreparably damaged our country in an attempt to interfere in our Presidential election," Mr. McCarthy said. "He weaponized our sacred system of justice against President Donald Trump.
"The American people will not tolerate this injustice, and the House of Representatives will hold Alvin Bragg and his unprecedented abuse of power to account," Mr. McCarthy said.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, seen as Mr. Trump's main potential rival for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, called the indictment "un-American."
"The weaponization of the legal system to advance a political agenda turns the rule of law on its head," Mr. DeSantis said. "It is un-American."
He accused Mr. Bragg of "stretching the law to target a political opponent."
A New York grand jury indicted Mr. Trump on Thursday over hush money payments made to porn star Stormy Daniels, making him the first ever serving or former president to face criminal charges.
Donald Trump Jr, the 76-year-old former President's eldest son, called the indictment "weaponized justice at its absolute worst."
"This is third world prosecutorial misconduct," said Eric Trump, another of his sons. "It is the opportunistic targeting of a political opponent in a campaign year."
Representative Elise Stefanik, the third-ranking Republican in the House, denounced the indictment as "unprecedented election interference" and a "political witch-hunt."
"The radical Far Left will stop at nothing to persecute Joe Biden's chief political opponent ahead of the 2024 presidential election to suppress the will and voice of the American people," Ms. Stefanik said.
Representative Jim Jordan, the Republican chairman of the House Judiciary Committee and a long-time Trump ally, had a one-word reaction.
"Outrageous," Mr. Jordan tweeted.
"I stand with Trump!!!" tweeted another close Trump ally, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene from Georgia.
Ronna McDaniel, the chairwoman of the Republican Party, also came out in support of the former President.
"When our justice system is weaponized as a political tool, it endangers all of us," said McDaniel.
She accused Mr. Bragg of a "blatant abuse of power" and alleged that he was "focused on political vengeance instead of keeping people safe."
