A Trump Indictment Would Put Republicans in a Bind
Prominent Republicans will need to take a stand if the former president is hit with criminal charges.
With him or against him?
Photographer: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
It looks increasingly likely that former President Donald Trump will be indicted by Manhattan prosecutors over alleged hush money payments to porn star Stormy Daniels. Republican politicians and other party officials who have tried to avoid taking a position on Trump and the 2024 nomination — the keep-quiet Republicans — are running out of time. Like it or not, they are going to have to choose sides.
Up to this point, keeping quiet was a viable strategy. Not a very brave one! But politicians are rarely courageous and sometimes problems just solve themselves, so ducking the issue had a logic to it. Taking on Trump would have risked alienating voters and party elites who remain steadfast supporters.