Trump says indictments are “part of the job description”

Former President Donald Trump says that getting criminally indicted is just “part of the job description.”

Trump, facing four criminal indictments and a total of 91 felony charges so far this year, said that he was not “thrilled” about his escalating legal woes but suggested that the indictments were only a routine concern during a rally in Rapid City, South Dakota, on Friday night.

The former president, who has pleaded not guilty to all counts and claims to be the victim of “persecution” and “election interference,” also repeated claims that the indictments are a “badge of honor” and he is being indicted “for” his supporters.

“Every time the radical left Democrats, Marxists, communists and fascists indict me, I consider it a great badge of honor,” Trump said. “And I’m being indicted for you. I am being indicted for you. I’m not too thrilled about that. But that’s part of the job description, isn’t it?”

When asked for clarification on the job being referenced, Trump spokesperson Steven Cheung told Newsweek that the ex-president’s remarks concerned “the job of being a leader and standing up against [President] Joe Biden and the Deep State who weaponize the justice system to interfere in an election.”

Immediate reactions to the remark on social media largely assumed that Trump had been referring to the job of president.

“I’m PRETTY sure that being indicted because you tried to subvert your country’s democratic process ISN’T part of the job as the founding fathers envisioned it,” @IndyMegs1 posted to X, formerly Twitter, in response to a clip shared by the @AccountableGOP account.

“<looks over the role of the President of the United States> Uhh, no?” posted @carbage_justin.

“No,” @shillman1 posted. “Getting indicted is not part of the job description.”

Newsweek reached out for comment to the White House and the Biden campaign via email on Friday night.

In addition to his four criminal cases, Trump is facing multiple civil lawsuits that he also argues are part of a politically motivated “witch hunt.”

Multiple recent legal complaints indirectly target Trump by seeking to block his potential return to the White House by claiming that he is already ineligible to hold office due to a legal theory about a clause in the U.S. Constitution’s 14th Amendment.

The amendment prohibits those who “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” after taking an oath of office from running for office again. While opinions among legal experts are divided, some say that Trump’s role in the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol automatically disqualifies him.

Trump denounced the theory as a “trick” by “Radical Left Communists” in a Truth Social post on Monday. Hours before his rally appearance on Friday, the former president lashed out at “slime balls” who filed suit to remove him from the ballot in Colorado on the same basis.

Regardless of his legal troubles, Trump remains far and away the leading Republican candidate in the 2024 election, with recent polls consistently showing him ahead of his nearest rival Ron DeSantis by more than 40 points.