“I Won’t Stand For Anybody Being Persecuted” – New Hampshire Republicans Stand by Trump Despite Criminal Charges

William FurneyOct 27, 2023

Minute Read

Republicans in New Hampshire are standing by their Trump man even as the presidential candidate faces a mountain of criminal charges and attacks by fellow Republicans. Some say he’s the only one who can get things done, in Washington, around the United States and indeed globally.

Waiting for Trump

Lines of Republican supporters — many wearing MAGA, or Make America Great Again, caps — were in attendance when Trump arrived in New Hampshire on Monday. He was there to register as a candidate in the state’s primary in January as well as to speak at a rally.

Speaking to Reporters

Reporters scoured the lines of Trump supporters to get a glimpse into what they were thinking about a potential second term for Trump at the White House. “He’s the only man to do the job that’s in front of us,” 65-year-old New Hampshire native Chris Wood told a reporter from USA Today.

‘Persecuted Trump’

Wood told the journalist she was going to reward a “persecuted” Trump with her vote in the primary, in the hope he would become the GOP candidate in the 2024 presidential election.

“I won’t stand for anybody being persecuted the way he’s been persecuted,” Wood said. “He doesn’t deserve it. The least I can do is give him my vote, but damn, he’s getting it.”

Fighting off Charges

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Among the litany of cases Trump is fighting are four federal indictments that contain a total of 91 criminal charges. They relate to alleged election interference in the 2020 presidential election that Trump lost to Joe Biden and alleged mishandling of top-secret government documents that prosecutors say risked US national security.

New York Trials

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Trump, his adult sons and executives at the Trump Organization property company are in court in Manhattan, New York City, fighting off charges that they committed years-long fraud by inflating the value of their many buildings, including Trump Tower, where the former president has a penthouse. Prosecutors are seeking at least $250 million in fines and the judge has already found “compelling evidence” that fraud was committed, as he revoked several of the organization’s licenses.

Trump has also been charged in a hush money case involving a former adult film star who was allegedly paid to stay quiet and not talk about an alleged affair with Trump.

Steady at the Polls

Despite the legal problems Trump is facing, his ratings in the polls have not suffered, and he continues to enjoy a wide margin over rivals including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley. Political analysts say that may be due to Trump’s framing of criminal and also civil action against him as little more than attacks by Democratic operatives trying to stop him from returning to the White House.

Liz Cheney Attack

Fierce Trump critic Liz Cheney launched another broadside at the billionaire property mogul on Sunday, branding him “the single most dangerous threat” that the United States is facing. She also said, on CNN, that Trump “cannot be the next president” and that she was considering a run for the White House herself.

Trump Would Be ‘Out of Control’

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If Trump becomes the next president, no one would have any control over him and he would do whatever he wanted, Cheney, daughter of former vice president Dick Cheney and a former Wyoming congresswoman, told CNN.

“If he is, all of the things he attempted to do, but was stopped from doing by responsible people around him at the Department of Justice, at the White House counsel’s office, all of those things he will do. There will be no guardrails.”

‘Don’t Vote for Me’

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Trump fans at the New Hampshire rally were astonished to hear their choice of candidate tell them not to vote for him — or anyone. Trump was suggesting the presidential ballot might again be “rigged,” like the one in 2020 that he lost and blamed on vote tampering. Instead, Trump told the crowd, they should be looking out for anything suspicious with the voting. There were plenty of other people to vote for him anyway, he said.

Way Ahead in New Hampshire

A Suffolk University/Boston Globe/USA Today poll puts voter support for Trump in New Hampshire at almost 50 percent, with his nearest rival, Haley, around 30 points behind.

Trump’s ‘a Jerk’

Another Republican voter who reporters spoke to at the Trump rally said many people don’t like Trump’s brash style but they still think he’s the best candidate for president.

“I mean, he’s a jerk. Nobody likes him,” said New Hampshire resident Cathlene Harvey, 73. “He’s taken care of everything that he promised he was going to take care of and I felt safe while he was president.”