TRANSCRIPT
Former U-S President Donald Trump has pleaded NOT guilty to charges stemming from his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.
It's his third indictment in fourth months, and the latest in a string of criminal cases.
Mr Trump arrived in Washington to face federal court with his motorcade, flying in from his private golf club in New Jersey.
It was a brief appearance - closed to cameras - with a court sketch showing Mr Trump surrounded by lawyers.
He spoke afterwards at the airport.
"Well thank you very much. This is a very sad day for America and it was also very sad driving through Washington DC and seeing the filth and the decay and all of the broken buildings and walls and the graffiti. This is not the place that I left. It's a very sad thing to see it, when you look at what's happening. This is a persecution of a political opponent. This was never supposed to happen in America. This is the persecution of the person who is leading by very, very substantial numbers in the Republican primary and leading Biden by a lot. So if you can't beat them, you persecute them or you prosecute them. We can't let this happen in America."
This is the first time an American president or former president has ever been indicted.
The Republican front-runner in the 2024 Presidential race has been charged with four criminal counts in this indictment: conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding, and conspiracy against rights.
The 45-page indictment - brought by special counsel Jack Smith - details how the former president spread lies about voter fraud and urged Republican officials to overturn Joe Biden's election, ultimately resulting in the January 6 Capitol riots.
Mr Trump has a total of 78 charges against him, including from two separate indictments.
They relate to the storage of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago home, and hush money payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels.
If sentenced to a maximum term for each, he would theoretically face hundreds of years in prison.
Mr Trump is also currently being investigated for potential conspiracy to commit election fraud relating to his attempts to overturn the presidential election results in the state of Georgia.
Outside the court in D-C, protesters gathered in both support and criticism:
PERSON 1: "He needs to be locked up, like effective immediately. It doesn't matter. He's done so much anyways, that this man roaming the streets is crazy."
PERSON 2: "I hope he gets every single thing that's coming to him. I feel like it's important that we hold even those on top accountable for breaking the law."
PERSON 3: "Trump's going to march on. He's probably gonna get more popular. Just this scene alone will make him more popular right here."
Some of his die-hard supporters showed up in a so-called MAGA [[Make America Great Again]] limo, while others held signs ranging from 'Lock him up', to 'Trump '24 or Before', and a man in a Trump suit with the word, 'LOSER,' brandished on the front:
"I'm above the law. I told you last-- I told you in 2020. You didn't listen to me. I am above the law."
Donald Trump's spokeswoman Alina Habba spoke ahead of his appearance, calling the indictment 'Biden-political warfare'.
“This is not a coincidence. This is election interference at its finest against the leading candidate right now for president for either party. President Trump is under siege in a way that we have never seen before. President Trump and his legal team and everyone on his team will continue to fight not for him, but for the American people."]
A judge has set the next hearing in the case for August the 28th - five days after the first Republican primary debate.
