Former President Donald Trump is "ready for his perp walk" and appears to be relishing in the idea of a performative spectacle if he is charged in connection to the 2016 hush-money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels, according to a New York Times report from Michael C. Bender and Maggie Haberman.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's grand jury investigation into Trump's role in wiring hush money payments to Daniels appears to be wrapping up and Trump expects to be indicted imminently. Trump in a tirade on Truth Social over the weekend claimed that he would be arrested Tuesday and called for his supporters to protest, though neither an arrest nor a large protest came to fruition. The looming potential charges, which would mark the first indictment in history of a former president, have raised questions about whether Trump would be perp-walked at the courthouse like many defendants.
Trump has described the hypothetical experience as "fun," Bender and Haberman write, and "welcomes the idea of being paraded by the authorities before a throng of reporters and news cameras."
"He has even mused openly about whether he should smile for the assembled media," the report added.
It's unclear how serious Trump's remarks are and whether he would be taken into custody by the New York Police Department in public view. The Times reported that if Trump surrenders voluntarily, Secret Service will likely coordinate with New York law enforcement to keep Trump out of public view and stave off a "media circus."
Trump's lawyer, Joe Tacopina, said in a Monday interview with former Trump adviser Kimberly Guilfoyle that an "all-out war" will ensue if that former president is indicted.
"They can do what they want," Tacopina said, "He'll be there loud and proud, and there's nobody that's gonna make him cower."
The Times report added that Trump has remained significantly detached from the severity of his potential indictment, and has been "spotted zipping around his Palm Beach resort in his golf cart and on one recent evening acted as D.J. at a party with his personally curated Spotify playlists, which often include music from the Rolling Stones to 'The Phantom of the Opera.'"
