COLUMBUS, Ohio — As former President Donald Trump heads to federal court Tuesday, Ohio Sena. JD Vance (R-Ohio) is calling the charges that Trump violated the nation’s espionage act “politically motivated.”
“The question of whether Trump should have kept those documents is fundamentally a political question. Criticize it, attack it, vote against it. But prosecuting a president over his own government's documents is turning a political issue into a legal one,” Vance tweeted on Monday.
The quote was later flagged by Twitter as being untrue. The claim that Vance made regarding the unlawful retention of national defense information as a “political issue” rather than a “legal issue” was marked as false.
Despite a series of legal trouble that has followed the former president since he left office, his supporter remains loyal.
Professor David Niven, who teaches political science at the University of Cincinnati. says Vance is an example of who Trump supporters are. He says no matter how bad it gets for Trump, the more energized his base becomes.
“This is a question of whether Trump followed the very explicitly and care of classified documents so I think JD Vance is looking for some plank to stand on that this is something that it isn't. A political question would be, should there be an Espionage Act? And I think the overwhelming majority of Americans would say 'Of course, there should be. Of course, we should',” says Niven.
Niven believes it's unlikely that Trump supporters will erode in the wake of this his latest legal troubles.
“He boasted way back in the beginning of this thing that he could shoot someone in the middle of Fifth Avenue and not lose supporters and there is a colonel of truth to the notion there isn't anything to violate our norms that wouldn't solidify a good chunk of his base,” he said.
A poll analysis by CBS News shows that Trump is Republicans' top choice for a presidential nominee, not because voters like what he did as president, but also because they think he can win.
Despite questions about his electability, they still see him as their best shot to defeat President Joe Biden. And views of electability depend on what voters prefer in a nominee: appealing to Americans in the middle or turning out the base.
Despite Trump's multiple indictments, six in 10 Republican primary voters say he would "definitely" beat Mr. Biden in a 2024 general election rematch. And comparing data collected before and after federal charges were unsealed, the new indictment has not put a dent into this number — at least not yet.