Ron DeSantis on Tuesday accused Donald Trump of being partly to blame for his mounting legal troubles, insisting the former president failed to ‘drain the swamp’ while in power.
DeSantis spoke to Fox News host Laura Ingraham and said Trump should have fired Christopher Wray — appointed by Trump as FBI director in June 2017 — and prosecuted Hillary Clinton while he had it. the occasion.
“He had three years to fire Christopher Wray and he didn’t fire him,” DeSantis said.
“And remember, I went to the rallies in 2016, Laura. You remember them, lock her up, lock her up, about holding Hillary accountable.
“And then, two weeks after the election, he said whatever I said that and left her alone.”
On Tuesday night, Ron DeSantis told Laura Ingraham that Donald Trump was partly to blame for his legal troubles because he failed to “drain the swamp”.
DeSantis, who trails Trump by a massive margin in the primary polls and was passed Monday by Chris Christie in New Hampshire, said he accepts Trump’s White House was not a total failure.
But, he said, the Trump administration has failed to reform the Justice Department.
“I give him credit, even though we’re in competition, for the great things he’s done,” DeSantis said.
“But one of the things he didn’t do was drain the swamp. The swamp got worse during his four years.
“And you had people like Wray, you had people in power who weren’t doing the job. You have to take action very fast and you have to make it happen.
DeSantis said that as governor of Florida he was able to “cleanse” the state of officials who he felt were not doing their job. DeSantis removed county prosecutors from duty and alleged lax penalties for felons, but the moves drew strong backlash.
He said he would fire Wray, whom Trump nominated to replace James Comey, on his first day in office.
DeSantis said Trump, 77, allowed FBI Chief Christopher Wray to stay on. Trump nominated him in June 2017
Christopher Wray was appointed FBI chief by Trump. DeSantis said he would fire him
Trump promised to “lock up” Hillary Clinton, but failed to find a way to prosecute her. The former secretary of state appeared on MSNBC Monday night and happened to be on the air when Trump’s fourth indictment was announced.
“With me as president, day one Christopher Wray is sent packing,” DeSantis said.
“You are going to see the DOJ evacuated. We will once again ensure a unique standard of justice in this country.
“And I can say that with credibility because I did it in Florida State.
“We emptied the swamp here.
“We got rid of negligent election supervisors in South Florida. We removed two different progressive Soros-funded prosecutors who were not enforcing the law.
‘So I showed an ability to act and get the job done. And, as president, I will do the same.
DeSantis spoke as Trump, who was indicted for the fourth time on Monday on criminal charges, demanded that his trials be postponed until after the 2024 election.
The 77-year-old called prosecutors “deranged” and “rabid supporters”, and said they were on a “witch hunt”.
He is now officially accused of trying to nullify Georgia’s vote in 2020; try to invalidate the entire 2020 election; poor management of classified information; and breaking campaign finance laws by silently paying money to a porn star.
On Tuesday night, Trump spoke out in a video posted to his social media and took the opportunity to slam Biden and his “crime family.”
Trump has declared Biden a “Manchurian candidate” – his new favorite insult – and claimed the president is controlled by China.
He also demanded, in an earlier message on Tuesday, that his trials take place after the 2024 elections.
“It’s now 100% that the Biden crime family received over $20 million from foreign countries while twisted Joe was vice president – and probably a whole lot more than that; it’s just the money they found,’ Trump began.
“None of Joe Biden’s defenders even attempted to explain what Joe and his family did, including his children and grandchildren – what were they doing to get all that money?
“I believe we have a compromised president. He was bribed and now he is being blackmailed. He’s a Manchu candidate.
Donald Trump is seen in a Truth Social clip he posted on Tuesday afternoon, his first video message since being indicted in Georgia
Joe Biden is seen with his son Hunter, whose business dealings continue to cause his father immense political problems
The term “Manchurian candidate” comes from a 1959 novel by Richard Condon, which tells the son of an important American political dynasty who is brainwashed into becoming an unwitting assassin for a communist plot.
The thriller has been made into several films – most recently in 2004, starring Denzel Washington, Liev Schreiber and Meryl Streep.
“That’s why crooked Joe lets other countries wander all over the United States,” Trump said.
“He is petrified by China because they know exactly how much money was given to him and they know where he is. China paid him a fortune.
Trump said Biden had ended “my initiative targeting Chinese spies in the United States” and “let China off the hook for COVID,” allowing the Chinese to establish bases in Cuba and Taiwan.
He added: ‘Crooked Joe’s corruption is a flagrant threat to national security’ and predicted ‘World War III with this blatantly incompetent man’.
Trump said “as soon as I am re-elected” he will appoint a special adviser “to look into all these kickbacks and bribes.”
“They’re trying to stop me. The only person they don’t want to lead is Donald Trump,’ the former president added.
Earlier on Tuesday, he demanded that the trials be held after the election.
“All of these bogus Biden administration lawsuits and cases, including locals, should be brought after the 2024 presidential election,” he wrote on Truth Social.
“What they have done is already election interference, but if the trials take place before the election, then it would be interference on a scale never seen in our country before.”
Fani Willis is seen Monday night announcing the charges against the 19 accused of working to nullify Georgia’s election results
On Monday, Trump was criminally indicted for the fourth time after a Georgia grand jury ruled he warranted a trial along with 18 others for trying to nullify the 2020 election.
The charges, brought by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, charge the 19 for a scheme intended to reverse Trump’s loss to Biden.
The sprawling 98-page indictment lists 19 defendants and 41 counts in total.
All defendants were charged with racketeering, which is used to target members of organized crime groups and carries a minimum sentence of five years in prison.
Trump has been charged with 13 of 41 counts: if convicted on all counts, he faces more than 70 years in prison.
Mark Meadows, Trump’s former White House chief of staff, and attorneys Rudy Giuliani, Jenna Ellis and John Eastman were among those charged.
“Rather than complying with Georgia’s legal procedure for electoral challenges, the defendants engaged in a criminal racketeering enterprise to nullify the result of Georgia’s presidential election,” Willis said at a news conference just before midnight.
Trump and the other defendants have until noon EDT Friday, Aug. 25 to voluntarily surrender, rather than be arrested, Willis said.
She said she intended to try all 19 defendants together within six months.
Court records show the case went to Judge Scott McAfee, a former prosecutor appointed in February by Republican Gov. Brian Kemp.
He will stand for re-election next year to retain his post.
Unlike federal courts where Trump is also awaiting trial, Georgia state courts allow television cameras, which means the public could have the unprecedented spectacle of watching a former president’s trial on live television. live as his campaign for a return to the White House kicks into high gear.
