Trump indictment pulls DeSantis-leaning Republicans back to MAGA fold
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[April 03, 2023]
By Tim Reid
HENDERSON, Nevada (Reuters) - Larry White, a self-described Republican
conservative, was thinking of voting for Ron DeSantis in his party's
presidential nominating contest, believing the Florida governor had a
better chance of winning back the White House from the Democrats than
former President Donald Trump.
Then came news on March 30 that Trump had been indicted in New York on
charges related to a hush money payment to a porn star, making him the
first former U.S. president to face criminal prosecution.
"Now I am absolutely voting for Trump," said White, 75, a composer and
musician in Nevada. "The indictment was the last straw for me, because
Trump has suffered so much political abuse. I think he's the strongest
candidate to contest what the left is doing. I'm all in."
White's anger and return to supporting Trump over DeSantis reflected the
sentiment of many Republican activists and voters Reuters spoke to in
Nevada. The western state votes early in the presidential nominating
process, giving it an outsized role in deciding which candidate gains
momentum in the 2024 election.
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Until the indictment, a majority of the 35 Republicans Reuters
interviewed had been willing to turn their backs on Trump and go with a
different candidate for the 2024 election, believing he was too flawed
and bombastic to win the general election for Republicans next year.
The criminal charges in New York changed all that, upending the
Republican primary contest and potentially giving Trump and his "Make
America Great Again" movement a major boost in his quest to re-enter the
White House. A trial is more than a year away, legal experts say,
meaning that Trump may face a jury trial as he campaigns.
All 35 Republican activists and voters Reuters spoke to say they will be
voting in the nominating contest to choose their 2024 White House
candidate.
Every one of them decried the indictment as a meritless, politically
motivated persecution of Trump. The charges against Trump are not yet
clear, though legal analysts say he may be prosecuted for falsifying
business records on charges of hiding the true nature of the payments.
Of the 35, 20 said they had been thinking of moving on from Trump and
backing DeSantis. Of those, 14 said the indictment was changing their
thinking and leading them back to supporting Trump again.
"I was really for Ron DeSantis," said Pepe Kahn, at a Republican club
meeting in Henderson on Saturday. "I'm now more likely to support Trump
than before. I think people who were more neutral than before will now
go in to bat for him. This is the most frightening thing I've ever seen
in the U.S."
STORMY DANIELS PAYMENT
Trump is expected to be arraigned, fingerprinted and photographed in a
New York courthouse on Tuesday as he becomes the first former president
to face criminal charges. An attorney for Trump said on Friday he will
plead not guilty.
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![](../images/040323PIX/news_j67.jpg)
Former U.S. president Donald Trump makes
a fist during a rally ahead of the midterm elections, in Minden,
Nevada, U.S., October 8, 2022. REUTERS/Carlos Barria/File Photo
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2023/Apr/03/images/ads/current/graue_lda_preowned_Buickencore_011323.jpg)
The indictment followed an investigation by a Manhattan grand jury,
which heard evidence about a $130,000 payment to porn star Stormy
Daniels allegedly authorized by Trump in the waning days of the 2016
presidential campaign. Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie
Clifford, has said she was paid to keep silent about a sexual
encounter with Trump in 2006. Trump has denied that this encounter
took place; concealing payments such as this could potentially
violate campaign finance laws.
The reaction to the indictment by congressional Republicans and even
his potential Republican rivals for the White House nomination has
demonstrated the firm grip that Trump still retains on the party,
thanks to the diehard support of a core group of voters.
Party leaders have rallied behind Trump. Even DeSantis, who has yet
to declare his candidacy but is expected to do so soon, called the
indictment "un-American."
Sarah Longwell, a Republican strategist and Trump critic, has
conducted seven focus groups this year with people who voted for the
businessman-turned-politician in the 2016 and 2020 presidential
elections, to gauge how they feel about his candidacy this time
round.
On Friday, a day after news of the indictment broke, all nine
members of her latest focus group said they were going to vote for
Trump over DeSantis in the Republican primary - the first time the
ex-president has had universal backing in a focus group, Longwell
said.
The reason was the indictment, Longwell added.
"People always feel defensive on his behalf," Longwell said. The
question going forward, she said, was whether the outrage on Trump's
behalf among Republican voters will endure throughout the primary
and help him defeat DeSantis, or whether it will dissipate and be
replaced by renewed concerns about his electability.
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Longwell said there is no guarantee the charges will continue to
help Trump in the long term, especially if he is indicted in other
investigations he faces, including alleged election interference in
Georgia and the mishandling of classified documents.
Trump's campaign boasted in an email to supporters on Sunday that it
has raised over $4 million since the indictment was announced.
Steven Cheung, a Trump spokesman, said in an email to Reuters that
the charges had "surged" support for Trump.
"Americans from all backgrounds are sick and tired of the
weaponization of the justice system against President Trump and his
supporters," Cheung said.
A spokesperson for DeSantis did not immediately respond to a request
for comment.
(Reporting by Tim Reid in Henderson, Nevada; Editing by Heather
Timmons and Matthew Lewis)
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