Former president Donald Trump appeared at the NCAA Westling Championships in Tulsa, Oklahoma, this past weekend.
This marks his first public appearance since taking to Truth Social to claim that he would be arrested on Tuesday, March 21, in relation to the Manhattan District Attorney’s ongoing investigation into the Stormy Daniels hush money scandal.
The Republican candidate appeared at the event ahead of a planned rally on Monday, as he continues to aim to become the GOP’s 2024 nominee for POTUS.
The Oklahoma crowd jumped to their feet and gave Trump a standing ovation to express their support for the embattled politician, as Trump smiled and waved to the audience. His wave eventually turned into a fist, punching the air in defiance.
As Radar previously reported, Trump urged his 9.4 million followers on Truth Social to “protest, protest, protest” and “TAKE THIS COUNTRY BACK!”
Several of the ex-president’s supporters later gathered outside of Mar-a-Lago ready to protect Trump in case the DA’s office follows through with an actual arrest warrant — which they have yet to confirm or deny.
The former president is expected to be indicted over payments of $130,000 to Daniels that occurred just before the 2016 election. The porn star was allegedly paid to keep quiet about an affair between her and the president though Trump’s associate, Michael Cohen.
Cohen, who was the candidate’s long-time “fixer”, pleaded guilty in two criminal cases and agreed to testify against his former employer.
Trump was invited to testify beside Cohen but failed to appear in court, calling the case against him a “witch hunt.”
If indicted, Trump could face one of two charges over the payments. He could be charged with a misdemeanor for falsifying business records if the DA can prove that Trump knew his retainer agreement with Cohen was a sham to facilitate the payments, or, if prosecutors can prove records were falsified to conceal another crime, he could be charged with a felony.