Live Coverage: Trump pleads not guilty, arraignment ends

NEWS: New courtroom sketches show former President Donald Trump and aide Waltine Nauta appearing before the judge in a federal courtroom.

NEWS: After exiting the federal courthouse where he was arraigned on 37 felony charges, former President Donald Trump headed to the Versailles Cuban Bakery.

Trump was greeted with jeers and cheers from the crowd at the restaurant, which is a common political meeting place.

He prayed with supporters and took photos with customers before reminding the crowd he would be making remarks later Tuesday evening.

NEWS: In a federal courthouse in Miami, Trump aide Waltine Nauta was not arraigned because he lacked proper counsel. He is expected to return on June 27.

Nauta and Trump arrived together and both are charged in the indictment, with Nauta accused of being the one to actually move boxes containing classified materials in an attempt to conceal them.

Trump and Nauta are allowed to continue to speak to each other, but the judge prohibited them from discussing the case.

In court, Trump did not speak, though he did smirk and laugh while speaking to his attorney at one point.

NEWS: Former President Donald Trump left a federal courthouse in Miami after pleading not guilty to 37 felony charges related to improperly withholding classified documents.

Trump was allowed to leave the court without any travel or legal restrictions and no cash bond was issued.

Trump was also told he was not allowed to reach out to any potential witnesses in the case. Some close associates of Trump’s were listed in the indictment and could be potential witnesses when the case goes to trial.

Trump is set to return to New Jersey, where he will deliver remarks from his Bedminster golf club at 8:15 p.m.

NEWS: Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, has vowed to hold up judicial nominees until Attorney General Merrick Garland “stops using his agency to harass Joe Biden’s political opponents.”

A number of prominent Republicans have joined former President Donald Trump in referring to the case as the “weaponization” of the Justice Department. They claim Trump was targeted while Democrats who were also found with classified materials did not face the same charges.

It’s not clear exactly what actions Garland would need to take to get Vance to back down.

NEWS: Immediately after former President Donald Trump pleaded not guilty to 37 felony charges related to retaining classified documents and obstructing justice, his campaign sent a fundraising email proclaiming his innocence.

The email accused Democrats of wanting to jail their main challenger in a politically-motivated case.

“His only offense is having the audacity to challenge the corrupt Washington ruling class and fight for the forgotten men and women of our country,” the email from Donald Trump, Jr. read.

When Trump was indicted in New York on charges of falsifying business records, his campaign saw a fundraising boost from similar tactics.

NEWS: Waltine Nauda, aide to former President Donald Trump, has pleaded not guilty to six charges.

Nauta is named in the indictment alongside Trump and is accused of having been the one to actually move the boxes containing sensitive documents at Mar-a-Lago.

Prosecutors allege that in addition to holding onto classified documents he was not allowed to have, Trump, with Nauta’s help, attempted to conceal those materials from his own attorneys to avoid turning them over to federal investigators.

ANALYSIS: Former President Donald Trump has maintained his innocence when it comes to classified documents the FBI seized from his home.

Former prosecutor Kristy Greenberg told NewsNation that Trump’s intent will be critical when it comes to whether he committed a crime.

Once he was no longer president, Trump had no authority to keep the classified documents, Greenberg said, and the indictment shows he was aware of that fact.

“These are really sensitive and important documents,” Greenberg said.

The documents posed a tremendous national security risk, Greenberg said, when stored at Mar-a-Lago in places where guests could have potentially had access to them.

ANALYSIS: Former President Donald Trump has pleaded not guilty to 37 felony charges related to classified documents found at his Mar-a-Lago home.

Trump’s portrayal of the case as a witchhunt against him has played well with the Republican base, and it’s likely to be a part of his campaign for the 2024 presidential nomination.

But when it comes to the general election, Democrats may also face the challenge of explaining why Trump was charged when other politicians who were found to have classified documents were not.

Former Trump Press Secretary Sean Spicer said the handling of classified material should be taken very seriously, but it should be applied equally.

“We’re seeing it play out in these national polls,” Spicer said. “There’s a lot of people in the middle who say gosh, I don’t entirely like Trump but I believe that they are weaponizing the system to go after him when they didn’t do the same to people on the left.”

NEWS: Former President Donald Trump has pleaded not guilty to 37 charges related to classified documents seized from Mar-a-Lago.

He is the first former president to be indicted on federal charges.

ANALYSIS: Trump aide Waltine Nauta is also charged in the indictment, facing six charges involving his role in concealing classified documents. One question that remains is whether or not Nauta will break away and separate his defense.

“The fact that he showed up at the courthouse speaks volumes,” former federal prosecutor Will Scharf said.

The prosecution is likely to be pressuring Nauta to cooperate and testify against Trump, Scharf said.

Nauta’s loyalty to Trump may be a sign of how he views the case, Scharf told NewsNation. If he believes he is likely to face serious consequences, he may be more likely to separate and form his own defense, Scharf said. But if Nauta views the indictment as baseless, he may be more likely to stick with a joint defense.

NEWS: Former President Donald Trump has entered the courtroom where he is set to be arraigned on 37 felony charges and the hearing is underway.

The charges stem from classified documents the FBI seized from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home.

https://t.co/MiLCBfxoYP pic.twitter.com/7UG2EqMfkJ
— NewsNation (@NewsNation) June 13, 2023

NEWS: Former President Donald Trump’s attorney, Alina Habba, addressed the media outside the Miami Federal courthouse Tuesday afternoon, ahead of his court appearance.

The former president is expected to plead not guilty and Habba took a familiar track in her statement, attacking President Joe Biden’s administration for the “unapologetic weaponization of the criminal justice system.”

“The decision to pursue charges against President Trump, while turning a blind eye to others, is emblematic of the corruption that we have here,” she said. “These are not the ideas that our democracy is founded upon. This is not our America,” she added.

She went on to say Trump would not need a mug shot as part of criminal proceedings.

“President Trump is in a very unique position where he doesn’t need to be given a mug shot. Obviously, he’s not a flight risk he is the leading candidate of the GOP at the moment,” she said. “He is going through a process that has been coordinated with Secret Service and it will all be handled seamlessly.”

ANALYSIS: While Trump may be able to fundraise off of outrage over his indictment, that doesn’t mean some of his supporters may not shift their alliances to his competitors.

May Mailman, former White House counsel for the Trump White House, said some of Trump’s primary challenges could take strategic steps to try to lure voters away from Trump as he is mired in legal trouble.

She said it’s possible the Republicans could also use the perceived double standard of justice when it comes to the general election. Trump has attacked prosecutors, asking why he has been charged when Hillary Clinton was not.

“Nobody has explained the Hillary Clinton situation in a way that is sufficient,” Mailman said.

NEWS: According to the U.S. Marshals Service, Trump and aide Waltine Nauta were booked shortly after arriving at the courthouse on Tuesday.

The men arrived at the courthouse together and will be arraigned on federal charges relating to classified documents found at Mar-a-Lago.

NEWS: While a judge ruled against allowing photographs or video inside the federal courtroom where former President Donald Trump will be arraigned, initial sketches have been released.

The image shows the process of selecting who will be allowed in the courtroom during the proceedings. With limited space, the court has also set up an overflow space where a live feed of the proceedings will be shown.

NEWS: Trump has arrived at the federal courthouse in Miami where he will be arraigned on 37 charges. He waved to the crowds from his motorcade before the car entered the garage.

@theKimAnderson reports former Pres. Trump waved from back seat as his motorcade entered the garage at the federal courthouse in Miami. He is expected to be arraigned in the next hour on a 37-count grand jury indictment.
— Evan Lambert (@EvanLambertTV) June 13, 2023

NEWS: The indictment against former President Donald Trump includes more information on the classified documents the FBI seized from Mar-a-Lago.

Prosecutors said the documents included information about the military capabilities and vulnerabilities of foreign nations as well as information about the U.S. military and nuclear capabilities.

In the indictment, documents listed as recovered include notes from intelligence briefings, details about communications with foreign leaders and a military contingency plan for invading a foreign nation.

ANALYSIS: Trump is not the only one charged with mishandling classified documents, which the FBI seized from his Mar-a-Lago home. His valet, Waltine Nauta, is also facing charges.

Judge Andrew Napolitano said those charges could be an attempt to pressure Nauta into testifying against Trump when it comes to the trial.

According to the indictment, Nauta was the one actually moving the boxes at Mar-a-Lago in an attempt to conceal them.

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— NewsNation (@NewsNation) June 13, 2023

NEWS: Former President Donald Trump is headed to the federal courthouse in Miami, where he will be arraigned on 37 charges related to classified documents found at his Mar-a-Lago home.

Trump is set to be arraigned at 3 p.m. ET.

After the indictment, he will fly to his Bedminster golf club in New Jersey, where he will give public remarks at 8:15 p.m. ET.

ANALYSIS: As Trump prepares to be arraigned on federal felony charges related to classified documents found at Mar-a-Lago, it isn’t the only court case he’s involved in.

Trump has also been indicted in New York on 34 charges related to falsifying business records. He’s also campaigning for the GOP presidential nomination, making the need for speedy trials more essential.

Typically, federal cases take priority over state ones, but there is no law requiring things be done that way. It’s possible prosecutors in both cases will negotiate among themselves to determine which case heads to trial first, taking into account the nature of the charges, the extent of possible sentencing and the availability of witnesses.

If the trials extend past the Republican primaries and into the general election, Trump would become the second candidate to campaign while facing criminal charges. The first was Socialist party candidate Eugene V. Debs in 1920, who campaigned from his prison cell after being convicted under the Espionage Act.

ANALYSIS: Trump has lashed out at the Department of Justice for the investigations into his conduct. While maintaining his innocence, Trump has also struggled to find legal representation.

Attorney Alan Dershowitz said tapes of Trump’s statements to his lawyers may not be great, but that’s no excuse for his troubles finding qualified legal representation.

“That’s no excuse for distorting the justice system, violating the Sixth Amendment, the constitutional right to counsel,” Dershowitz said.

While there is evidence that indicates Trump is guilty, Dershowitz said, there’s also reason to believe he was specifically targeted.

“You should have appointed a special counsel to investigate the problem of former officials dealing with classified information,” he said.

That would have covered Trump, along with others in both parties who have been found to have classified material after leaving their role.

NEWS: GOP primary candidate Vivek Ramaswamy said he will pardon Trump if he is elected president and has called on other GOP candidates to commit to doing the same.

Ramaswamy said those who don’t sign should explain their reasons for refusing.

“The donor class has been calling every Republican candidate and telling us to stay away from this, not to touch it from a ten-foot pole,” he said.

Ramaswamy called on his fellow candidates to refuse pressure from big-money donors who might be wary of defending Trump when he is facing such serious charges.

“I refuse to abide by being a disciple of the donor class. I think we need to declare independence from our donor class in the Republican Party,” Ramaswamy said.

NEWS: Police have issued an all-clear after moving crowds to inspect a suspicious object outside the Miami courthouse where Trump is set to be arraigned this afternoon.

The object in question was a television someone had strapped to a pole. Nothing dangerous was found.

ANALYSIS: The unsealed indictment laid out in detail the facts behind the 37 charges Trump is facing in federal court.

Trial attorney and former prosecutor Arthur Aidala said the thorough and detailed information lays out a case that seems very strong. It’s also one that’s more easily understood, even by those who aren’t legal experts.

“The indictment is clear, it’s simple, it lays it all out,” Aidala said.

It’s likely that one of Trump’s legal moves will be to file a motion against selective prosecution because Hillary Clinton and President Joe Biden weren’t charged with crimes related to classified documents, Aidala said. But, he cautioned, that’s not a defense against the charges.

NEWS: Media and members of the public who were gathering outside the Miami federal courthouse where Trump is set to be indicted have been moved due to a suspicious package.

Law enforcement officials were responding to the scene and NewsNation’s Brooke Shafer reports the possibility that a bomb squad is on the way.

ANALYSIS: This is the first time a former president has been indicted on federal charges. Some have said the investigation was “weaponizing” the Department of Justice, while others have said the case shows no one is above the law.

Former U.S. Attorney Kendall Coffey said the case does raise questions about whether the current administration is crossing a line.

“It’s not a political stunt, it brings in the enormous powers of the Department of Justice,” Coffey said.

As skeptical as people may be, Coffey said the indictment contains significant information that Trump’s defense team will have to explain in court.

Still, it’s far from a slam dunk for prosecutors, Coffey said. Trump will likely claim he believed he declassified information. The sensitive material found in boxes at Mar-a-Lago were also mixed in with other items Trump was allowed to take with him from the White House, which could complicate issues.

NEWS: Crowds are gathering outside the federal courthouse in Miami where Trump will be arraigned Tuesday afternoon. He is expected to plead not guilty to the 37 felony charges.

The crowd is a mix of media, supporters and protesters.

NewsNation’s Brooke Shafer reported police were asking the crowds to move earlier, as the Department of Homeland Security responded to an item that needed to be removed.

ANALYSIS: Trump was previously indicted in New York on charges of falsifying business records. He pleaded not guilty to the charges and, as with the federal indictment, has maintained his innocence and said the case was brought for political reasons.

NewsNation political editor Chris Stirewalt explained the difference between the two, noting the case in New York seemed to be a bit of a reach to legal experts.

When the plan to charge Trump was announced, Republicans came out to criticize the Department of Justice, calling the charges political and referring to the weaponization of the DOJ.

However, Stirewalt said, some of that began to change once the detailed indictment was unsealed.

“What you saw reflected on the campaign trail yesterday, this is a big deal and whatever you think about Hillary Clinton or Hunter Biden, this is a serious issue,” Stirewalt said.

NEWS: Judge Jonathan Goodman, who will be presiding over the arraignment, denied a request from the media to allow photos or video footage of Trump’s court appearance.

Goodman said allowing media would undermine the security procedures in place. He also noted the proceedings are public and the court has arranged an overflow room, where a video feed from inside the courtroom will be shown, to accommodate the large number of people expected to attend.

Goodman also noted he is only presiding over the arraignment and would defer making a ruling that could cover future trial proceedings, leaving that up to Judge Aileen Cannon.