He hasn’t lost his appetite! Donald Trump has dinner at a Florida hotel ahead of his arraignment

Looking relaxed and cheerful on the eve of his federal indictment, Donald Trump happily posed for photos with supporters and gave a thumbs up as he made his way to dinner.

The 76-year-old arrived at his resort in Doral, a Miami suburb, around 3 p.m. and was seen heading to meetings with his advisers.

At 7 pm he came to the lobby for dinner at the hotel restaurant with his son Eric.

Trump smiled with fans and posed for photos, asking them about their work and thanking them for their support.

In video obtained by CNNshowed no sign of any stress ahead of Tuesday’s arraignment at the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. US Courthouse, 12 miles from Doral.

Trump will be taken into custody and officially notified of the 37 charges against him.

As with his April arrest in Manhattan, he is not expected to be handcuffed, nor is it thought to be mugshot.

It is still unclear whether he is expected to make a plea. His lawyers have already said he will plead not guilty.

Procedural details of the hearing were confirmed on Monday.

Chief U.S. District Judge Cecilia Altonaga informed reporters that they were not allowed to bring cell phones into the courthouse.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman had previously denied a separate request to televise the hearing.

Goodman argued that “allowing photos would undermine massive security arrangements” for Trump’s federal court appearance.

In his ruling, Goodman acknowledged that Trump’s indictment is “undoubtedly ‘special’ and ‘really historic and of enormous importance.’

It is the first time in US history that a former president has been charged with federal crimes.

But Goodman concluded that the press coalition “cited no case or legal authority that would support the view that photographs should be allowed.”

The charges, while largely procedural in nature, are the latest in an unprecedented public reckoning this year for Trump, who is being charged in New York stemming from hush money payments during his 2016 presidential campaign and also ongoing research in Washington And Atlanta in efforts to reverse the results of the 2020 race.

He has tried to project confidence in the face of obvious legal jeopardy, attacking Special Counsel, Jack Smith, as “deranged”; promise to stay in the race; and scheduling a speech and fundraiser for Tuesday night at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey.

“They’re using this because they can’t win the election fairly and outright,” Trump said in an interview with Americano Media Monday.

The trial is also unfolding against the backdrop of potential protests and unrest.

Some high-profile lenders have used barbed rhetoric to show their support.

Trump himself has encouraged supporters to join a planned protest at the Miami courthouse on Tuesday, where he is expected to surrender to authorities.

Some Trump supporters also planned to load buses to travel to Miami from other parts of Florida, worrying law enforcement officials preparing for possible unrest around the courthouse.

Miami Mayor Francis Suarez said the city would be ready, and Police Chief Manuel A. Morales said downtown could see anywhere from a few thousand to 50,000 protesters.

He said the city would divert traffic and possibly block streets depending on how busy it is.

As Trump’s motorcade came to a crawl as he entered his Miami resort on Monday, cheers erupted from about 50 supporters gathered across the street.

He gave a thumbs up as he passed and they waved their pro-Trump signs and banners.

Just minutes before Trump’s arrival, a near brawl broke out when a man stood in front of the crowd holding signs and wearing a suit covered in a two-word sentence that the former president called an obscenity.

Supporters ran towards him and several yelled at him before Doral police stepped in and moved him onto the street.

a federal grand jury in Washington had heard testimony for months in the documents case, but the Justice Department filed it in Florida, where Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort is located and where many of the alleged obstructionist actions took place.

While Trump will appear before a federal magistrate on Tuesday, the case has been assigned to a district court judge he has appointed. Aileen cannonwhich last year ruled in its favor in a dispute over whether an external special master could be appointed to review the secret documents seized.

a federal appeals panel eventually quashed her statement.

It is unclear which defense Trump is likely to cite as the case progresses.

Two of his lead attorneys announced their resignation the morning after his indictment, and another attorney’s notes and recollections, M. Evan Corcoranare quoted repeatedly in the 49-page indictment document, suggesting prosecutors may consider him a star witness.

Trump has said he wants to strengthen his legal team, though no announcements were made on Monday.

But that matters, because county rules require defendants to have a local attorney in order for an arraignment to proceed.

The Justice Department on Friday unsealed an indictment accusing Trump of 37 felonies, 31 of which related to the willful withholding of national defense information. Other charges include conspiracy to obstruct and false statements.

The indictment alleges that Trump was deliberately detained hundreds of secret documents which he took from the White House to Mar-a-Lago after leaving the presidency in January 2021.

The material he stored, including in a bathroom, ballroom, bedroom and shower, included material about nuclear programs, defense and weapons capabilities of the US and foreign governments, and a Pentagon “plan of attack,” the indictment said.

The information, if made public, could jeopardize members of the military, confidential human sources and intelligence-gathering methods, prosecutors said.

Beyond that, prosecutors say, he tried to hinder the government’s efforts to recover the documents, including by ordering personal assistant Walt Nauta — who was indicted along with Trump — to move boxes to hide them and also his own lawyer to hide or destroy documents. requested by a subpoena from the Department of Justice.