Feed The Media Machine: Whoop it up before Tuesday in Miami Criminal Court

...Lake remains an eager Trump ally, seen by some as a possible pick for vice-president. On Friday, she said she was “more than willing to fill Mike Pence’s shoes”. . .

Lake, a TV news anchor turned far-right firebrand, lost the election for Arizona governor last year. She continues to insist without evidence her defeat was the result of fraud.

• Speaking to Georgia Republicans on Friday, she said: “I have a message tonight for [US attorney general] Merrick Garland, and Jack Smith, and Joe Biden. And the guys back there in the fake news media, you should listen up as well, this one’s for you.

“If you want to get to President Trump, you’re going to have to go through me, and you’re going to have to go through 75 million Americans just like me.

“And I’m going to tell you, most of us are card-carrying members of the NRA [National Rifle Association]. That’s not a threat – that’s a public service announcement. . .

Kari Lake greets attendees at the Republican convention in Columbus, Georgia, on Friday. Photograph: Natrice Miller/AP

US politics

Kari Lake’s vow to defend Trump with guns threatens democracy, Democrat says

Ruben Gallego, running for US Senate next year, says Arizona Republican’s response to Trump’s federal indictment is dangerous

Martin Pengelly in New York

@MartinPengelly

Mon 12 Jun 2023 08.24 EDT

The Arizona Republican Kari Lake’s vow of armed resistance over Donald Trump’s indictment for retaining classified records “threatens the very core of our democracy”, an Arizonan Democratic congressman said.

Fears that Republicans’ rhetoric after Trump indictment could spark violence

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Ruben Gallego is running to replace the former Democrat Kyrsten Sinema in the US Senate next year.

He said: “I know this language isn’t just hyperbole – it’s dangerous and it threatens the very core of our democracy.”

The 38-count federal indictment against Trump was unsealed on Friday. He is due to appear in court in Florida on Tuesday. Jack Smith, the special counsel, told reporters he would “seek a speedy trial”.

Trump was already in unprecedented legal jeopardy. He and other Republicans responded to the indictment under the Espionage Act with incendiary rhetoric.