MAGA Inc. spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt accused MSNBC host Rachel Maddow of saying “the quiet part out loud” on Thursday night after the left-leaning anchor wondered whether the Trump indictment was levied to discourage him from running.
Former President Donald Trump announced Thursday night in a Truth Social post that he has been indicted for allegedly mishandling more than 300 classified documents. Trump said his attorneys were informed of the indictment and that he is summoned to appear at the Federal Courthouse in Miami on June 13. The indictment allegedly includes at least seven counts, including conspiracy to a scheme to conceal, willful retention of national defense information and false statements and representations, ABC News reported.
Leavitt slammed Maddow for suggesting there could be a potential plea deal in which Trump would drop out of the race.
“Just a few minutes ago … Rachel Maddow, a very liberal pundit on MSNBC, said the quiet part out loud. She posed the question, ‘Can the DOJ drop this case in exchange for assurance that Donald Trump will never be able to run for office again?’ As astonishing as those words are, that is the true intention here,” Leavitt said. “Joe Biden, Merrick Garland, Jack Smith — they are colluding to target their political opposition, Donald Trump.”
Maddow had suggested there could be a “political solution” to the indictment. (RELATED: ‘Why Do You Believe It?’: ‘Fox & Friends’ Hosts Argue Over Charges Against Trump)
“You have to wonder if the Justice Department is considering whether there is some political solution to this criminal problem,” Maddow said on “The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell.”
Maddow cited former Vice President Spiro Agnew’s 1973 resignation before posing the idea of “whether part of the issue here is not just that Trump has committed crimes, but that Trump has committed crimes and plans on being back in the White House.”
“Do they consider as part of a potential plea offer, something that would … proscribe him from running for office again? I don’t know.”
O’Donnell then suggested if that was a possibility, it would likely “have to come from the defense side of the negotiation.”
“Otherwise, it would put the Justice Department in this position that Donald Trump claims they’re in,” he continued, noting Trump claims prosecutors are “simply trying to stop him from becoming president again, and that’s the only reason they’re doing this.”