Donald Trump is preparing to be arrested and taken to the courthouse in Manhattan, New York, on Tuesday (April 4) for his alleged hush money offering for a sexual encounter with Stormy Daniels in 2016. However, he and his team plan on using this moment to further his 2024 presidential campaign.
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In a recent interview with right-wing political commentator Benny Johnson on Monday (April 3), Trump’s attorney Alina Habba spoke on his arrest as a martyrdom. Claiming it will only bring him more supporters, Habba compared Trump’s situation to the spike in popularity rappers Tupac and Notorious B.I.G. received after they were murdered in the 1990s.
“Donald Trump is Tupac. Donald Trump’s Biggie Smalls, he’s better than Tupac. I’m east coast, so I love Biggie,” she said. “Donald Trump is his own brand. He is everything. This is just gonna boost him, we’ve seen it in the polls. It’s not a question, it’s a fact.”
Earlier in the week, Johnson also made the same claim. Tweeting “Democrats just turned Donald Trump into Tupac” on May 30, it seems that Republicans view Trump’s arrest as unjust.
Additionally on Monday, Rolling Stone reported that Trump is opting to be arrested in broad daylight in front of the media, as opposed to making it a low-key affair. Hoping to continue to rally supporters during this turbulence, Trump wants to be seen by as many as possible, a law enforcement source told RS.
“It’s kind of a Jesus Christ thing. He is saying ‘I’m absorbing all this pain from all around from everywhere so you don’t have to,’” the anonymous source said. “‘If they can do this to me they can do this to you,’ and that’s a powerful message.”
It’s hard to not feel that Trump and his followers are being melodramatic about his arrest. Although this will be the first time a U.S. president will be hit with criminal charges, it’s hardly comparable to the deaths of rap icons Tupac and Biggie.
At the time of their deaths, Pac and Biggie were mourned due to their positive contributions to the hip-hop landscape and pop culture. Trump, who is alive and well, is instead being booked for a crime he committed. But hey, maybe all publicity is good publicity.
(Photo By Raymond Boyd/Getty Images)
