The federal indictment against former President Donald Trump indicates he was “incredibly reckless” in handling classified information, Republican presidential hopeful Nikki Haley said Monday — days after decrying the case as “prosecutorial overreach.”
“If this indictment is true, if what it says is actually the case, President Trump was incredibly reckless with our national security,” Haley, the former ambassador to the United Nations and onetime governor of South Carolina, told Fox News.
“More than that, I’m a military spouse, the 51-year-old added. “My husband’s about to deploy this weekend. This puts all of our military men and women in danger.”
“It’s frustrating, and it causes problems. … This is the second indictment, we’re looking at possibly a third indictment coming [from] Georgia.”
Trump, 76, was charged last week over his handling of classified documents following a months-long inquiry by special counsel Jack Smith.
The former president has adamantly denied wrongdoing and ripped the investigation as a “witch hunt.”
The first-ever federal indictment against a sitting or former president includes 31 counts of willful retention of national defense material, one count of corruptly concealing a document or record, one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice, one count of withholding a document, once count of scheming to conceal, one count of making false statements to a federal agent, and one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice.
Shortly before the indictment was unsealed Friday, Haley tweeted: “This is not how justice should be pursued in our country. The American people are exhausted by the prosecutorial overreach, double standards, and vendetta politics. It’s time to move beyond the endless drama and distractions.”
On Monday, Haley reiterated her misgivings about about the indictment, telling host Martha MacCallum that “two things can be true at the same time.”
“The DOJ and FBI have lost all credibility with the American people,” she added. “And getting rid of just senior management isn’t going to be enough to fix this. This is going to take a complete overhaul and we have to do that.”
Here's what to know about former President Donald Trump's federal indictment
Former President Donald Trump has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges related to mishandling classified White House documents that were recovered at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.
Trump unlawfully kept hundreds of documents after leaving office — including papers detailing America’s conventional and nuclear weapons programs, potential weak points in US defenses, and plans to respond to a foreign attack, federal prosecutors charged Friday.
The 45th president stored boxes containing the documents throughout his estate, including “a ballroom, a bathroom and shower, an office space, his bedroom, and a storage room,” according to a 49-page indictment filed in Miami federal court Thursday.
Follow The Post’s coverage of former President Trump’s federal indictment
- Trump indicted on 7 charges — including under Espionage Act — in Mar-a-Lago classified documents case
- Federal indictment against former President Trump unsealed
- New York Republicans slam Trump indictment as ‘witch hunt’
- Donald Trump’s legal team gets shakeup as two top attorneys resign after indictment
- Trump indicted in documents probe: What it means and what’s next
- On trial: What was in the mind of Donald Trump?
- Melania Trump stone-faced arriving in New York ahead of husband’s indictment
- Trump rejected lawyers’ efforts to settle classified docs case: report
The indictment against Trump was unsealed hours after the 77-year-old announced he had been charged by Jack Smith, the special counsel tapped in November to examine Trump’s retention of official documents at Mar-a-Lago.
The indictment is the former commander-in-chief’s second since leaving office and marks the first time in US history a former president has faced federal charges.
In April, Trump pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts brought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg related to hush-money payments made to porn star Stormy Daniels prior to the 2016 election.
Haley also alluded to concerns about Trump’s viability in the general election given his mounting legal woes.
“We cannot have Biden win this election. We cannot go through Biden or Kamala Harris winning this election. We’ve got to have someone that can win a general election,” she emphasized.
Trump was indicted earlier this year by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg on 34 counts of falsifying business records in connection with “hush money” payments to porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election.
Additionally, Fulton County, Ga. District Attorney Fani Willis is expected to make a decision about charging Trump in August following her investigation into attempts by the former president and his allies to overturn the 2020 election result in the Peach State.
On Jan. 2, 2021, Trump called Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and emphasized the need to “find 11,780 votes,” the exact number needed to overturn his loss. That phone call helped spark the inquiry.
The former president is scheduled to appear in Miami federal court at 3 p.m. Tuesday for a hearing and possible arraignment in the documents case.
