Roger Stone, Donald Trump's former adviser, told Newsmax on Friday that the indictment of the ex-president on charges related to possessing classified documents at his Florida home will only "turbocharge" his bid for the Republican 2024 presidential nod.
"This is going to further turbocharge his drive for the Republican nomination," Stone said on "Eric Bolling The Balance." "The effect on the general election is a little too soon to say. For those who want to look at the polls, it's important to recognize that you cannot poll any question in the eye of the storm. You have to wait a couple of days to let public sentiment settled down and then we'll see where we are."
Trump announced Thursday that he had been indicted by a grand jury empaneled by special counsel Jack Smith, and on Friday the 37-count document was unsealed, including charges of conspiracy and espionage.
Several political analysts, commentators and Republicans have suggested the timing of the indictment was intentional with the revelation earlier Thursday that an FBI witness had informed the agency in 2020 that he had first-hand knowledge that the Ukrainian energy concern Burisma had paid a $5 million bribe each to Joe Biden and his son Hunter in exchange for U.S. policy considerations.
"I think [Trump] has to stay he still needs to stay focused on the failures of the Biden administration," said Stone, who was an early adviser to Trump's 2016 presidential campaign.
"You also need to stay focused on the elementary unfairness of a system that doesn't prosecute Hillary Clinton when she breaks the law, doesn't prosecute FBI Director [James] Comey or CIA Director [John] Brennan or those who perpetrated the entire Russian collusion hoax on the American people and abused the authority of the U.S. government in doing so.
"But there's a broader question here, and that is will Donald Trump now be limited in his ability to travel? Because when I was under federal charges and on probation prior to trial, I was both gagged by the judge, and I was not allowed to essentially leave South Florida without permission from the court.
"Are they going to do the same thing to Donald Trump? That would certainly be election interference because he's not just a private citizen. He's not just a former president. He's an active candidate for president of the United States, and this is a willful act of election interference."
Regardless, Stone said, Trump will not be cowed by the accusations.
"Having known Donald Trump for 44 years, he will never quit," Stone said. "He will never drop out. He will never throw in the towel. He was out playing 18 holes of golf today. What does that tell you?"
About NEWSMAX TV:
NEWSMAX is the fastest-growing cable news channel in America!
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.