West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin, a Democrat, has weighed in on the indictment of former President Donald Trump by saying, “no one’s above the law, but no one should be targeted by the law.”
Manchin commented on Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s indictment during several shows on Sunday, including CNN’s “State of the Union.”
The centrist senator warned that the move would further divide Americans and that Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg must “remove all doubt” in the judicial process if he proceeds ahead.
“It’s a very sad time for America to go through what we’re going through now,” he said. “People are being divided, and they think that justice might be biased. We have to make sure that we wait to see what comes out next week, and I hope they do their job. And I’ve said this, no one’s above the law, but no one should be targeted by the law, especially through the political process. So we’ll just wait and see next week. I hope they are very thorough.”
Host Dana Bash followed up by asking Manchin if he believes that Trump is being targeted for political reasons.
“Is that what you think is going on here? That he is a political target?” Bash asked.
Manchin said that he was not saying that but that Bragg does not have room for doubt in this case.
“No, I’m saying you have to remove all doubt,” Manchin replied. “You have to remove all doubt. You have to make sure you cross every t and dot every i, as they say. But you know that no person, the president, myself or anybody else in Congress, no matter what your status is, in the United States of America, you’re not above the law. And on the other hand, no person should be targeted by the law either. So let’s make sure that’s cleared up, and let’s see where it goes.”
Manchin also discussed the issue later in the day during an appearance on NBC News’ “Meet the Press.” He warned that a “segment of society believes that maybe it’s biased, that the system doesn’t work for all.”
“We must come together. The American people want us to do our job,” Manchin continued. “Let’s wait until what comes out next week. Let’s see the direction this goes. But the bottom line is it’s a very sad time in America. You have geopolitical unrest around the world. Just think of the people who don’t wish our society or our form of democracy to work, whether it be China, Russia or whoever. They’re looking and saying, ‘Oh my goodness, let’s just sit back and kind of watch this melee unfold.’ Well, I want to show them that as Americans, we can work together.”
Trump is expected to surrender in New York on Tuesday.
“I will be leaving Mar-a-Lago on Monday at 12 noon, heading to Trump Tower in New York,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social over the weekend. “On Tuesday morning I will be going to, believe it or not, the Courthouse. America was not supposed to be this way!”
