By Steve Neavling
As former President Trump prepares to appear for his arraignment in federal court on Tuesday, law enforcement agencies are monitoring online threats and incendiary rhetoric surrounding potential protests.
Trump continues to declare he is the victim of a “witch hunt,” claiming the charges against him over his handling of classified documents are a politically driven attack.
On Truth Social, Trump appeared to urge his supporters to show up at the courthouse in Miami.
“SEE YOU IN MIAMI ON TUESDAY!!!” he wrote on June 9.
Trump also shared a meme declaring, “THIS IS NOT A GAME, THIS IS WAR.”
In an interview with his former adviser Roger Stone, Trump said, “Our country has to protest.”
At a Republican event in Georgia on June 9, former Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake suggested armed protesters could stop an arraignment.
“If you want get to President Trump, you’re gonna have to go through me, and you’re gonna have to go through 75 million Americans just like me,” she said. “And I’m gonna tell you, most of us are card-carrying members of the NRA. That’s not a threat, that’s a public service announcement.”
On Twitter, U.S. Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., declared that “we have now reached a war phase.”
“Eye for an eye,” he tweeted.
At a news conference on Monday, Miami Mayor Francis X. Suarez, a Republican, said violent protests were not welcome in the city and that law enforcement was prepared to quell any problems.
“We encourage people to be peaceful,” Suarez said, adding, “We’re going to have the adequate forces necessary to ensure that.”
Suarez added, “We are prepared for a variety of crowd sizes. We have the ability to increase our capacity if necessary.”
Miami Police Chief Manuel Morales said police were preparing for crowds of between 5,000 and 50,000 people.
“We’re taking this event extremely serious,” he said. “We know there’s the potential for things taking a turn for the worse, but that’s not the Miami way.”
