Barricades unloaded near Manhattan criminal court ahead of possible Trump indictment
Barricades arrived outside the Manhattan Criminal Court Monday morning as New York City braces for potential charges against former President Trump, who warned over the weekend that he could be arrested as soon as Tuesday in relation to a hush-money probe.
Workers were seen unloading steel barricades from a New York Police Department truck, stacking them outside the courthouse and the Manhattan district attorney’s offices in lower Manhattan.
NBC New York reported over the weekend that local, state and federal law enforcement were readying for a possible indictment for the former president, considering security around the Manhattan Criminal Court in the event that Trump is charged.
Trump wrote on Truth Social that he anticipated an arrest on Tuesday in connection with the alleged hush-money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels, urging his supporters to protest.
“Protest, take our nation back!” Trump said.
His call has sparked concerns about how his supporters could respond. When the former president lost his 2020 reelection bid, his calls to his base to fight back culminated in the violent Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
A number of lawmakers have weighed in on the call for protest in recent days. New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu (R) and Gary Cohn, Trump’s onetime economic adviser, stressed their desire for peace. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said “there’s no reason” to protest a potential Trump arrest at all.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) said Sunday that there should be no “violence or harm.”
“I don’t think people should protest this stuff,” McCarthy said when asked about Trump’s statement.
Trump’s former Vice President Mike Pence called the potential indictment against Trump “deeply troubling” but noted that “violence will not be tolerated.”
“We respect the right of Americans to let their voice be heard and to express the frustration over what appears to be a politically motivated prosecution of the former president,” Pence said. “But we want to send a very clear message that violence will not be tolerated and anyone that would engage in violence would be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
The Manhattan district attorney’s office declined to comment on Trump’s claims about the possible arrest.
Trump has bashed Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and his office as the case continues. Bragg told his staff over the weekend that the office will “not tolerate attempts to intimidate our office or threaten the rule of law in New York,” CNN reported.
The Hill has reached out to NYPD and the Manhattan District Attorney’s office about the barricades.
Updated at 12:11 p.m.