Donald Trump’s former chief of staff has claimed the 77-year-old is “s***less” about going to prison for the rest of his life – adding that he will finally be “held accountable” for his actions.
John Kelly, a four-star general in the Marines who served as Trump’s chief of staff from July 2017 to January 2019, said he felt Trump’s demeanor after his indictment on Tuesday was designed to cover his fears.
“He’s terrified,” Kelly countered The Washington Post.
That’s how he compensates. He gives people the impression that he doesn’t care by doing this.
“For the first time in his life, it looks like he’s being held accountable. Up to this point in his life it’s like I’m not going to pay you; take me to court. He’s never been held accountable before.”
John Kelly was Donald Trump’s chief of staff from 2017 to 2019. He said the former president was “s***less” about possibly going to jail
Kelly, a four-star naval general, has said he took the position of chief of staff out of a sense of duty to his country, but has since been outspoken about Trump’s unfitness for president
Trump surrounded himself with adoring fans at a Cuban restaurant in Little Havana immediately after his indictment
Trump on Tuesday was determined to exude confidence and show his supporters that he was being wrongly accused.
His team posted on social media a clip of Will Smith’s song that read “Welcome to Miami” as he arrived at court, and after the performance, he stopped at a Cuban restaurant in Little Havana, where he was mobbed by fans. In the evening, he delivered a defiant speech to a crowd of supporters at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey — and raised more than $2 million in donations from those who paid to attend.
“It’s part public relations and part babysitting,” said Stephanie Grisham, one of Trump’s former White House press secretaries.
“He wants people to see the cheering crowd so they don’t think anything is going wrong.
“It’s also because the staff around him want to keep him entertained and want people to cheer for him and give him the ego stroke he needs so they don’t have to deal with him being all pissed off.”
Stephanie Grisham, pictured on July 9, 2019 with Donald Trump and National Security Adviser John Bolton, said Trump’s being surrounded by supporters following his indictment was “part PR and part babysitting.”
Sources close to Trump told the paper he was most annoyed by his reputation for volcanic temper and was furious at the charge.
On the eve of the court hearing, Trump asked how he was feeling and told a radio show, “It’s fine.”
The host, Howie Carr, replied, “You sound like you’re in a good mood.”
Trump agreed.
“I am,” Trump said. “I’m just fighting for the country.”
CNBC reports this on Wednesday that supporters who have donated or raised more than $100,000 for his 2024 bid for the White House have been invited to a “candlelight dinner” in Bedminster on Tuesday night.
They were fed Trump favorites, including burgers and crab cakes, and were served wine and cocktails.
The initial invitation had teased special convention guests, but only Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville made it to New Jersey, as a vote was held Tuesday night.
Trump raised more than $2 million from donors who attended a ‘candlelight dinner’ with him in Bedminster on Tuesday night
The former president addressed a crowd of several hundred outside the clubhouse at his golf resort in Bedminster, New Jersey
Senator Tommy Tuberville, a Republican from Alabama, attended Trump’s speech in Bedminster and then stayed for the intimate “candlelight dinner,” where only donors who paid more than $100,000 could attend
Before the more exclusive dinner, a crowd of several hundred gathered in front of the clubhouse to hear him make sharp remarks about the Mar-a-Lago filing case.
That event attracted some Trumpworld favorites, including My Pillow CEO Mike Lindell, Sebastian Gorka, Andrew Giuliani, and Bernie Kerik.
Eric Trump attended the event, as did Kimberly Guilfoyle, Donald Trump Jr.’s fiancé.
Melania Trump stayed in New York City.
Aides who had traveled to Miami with the president, including Boris Epshteyn and Margo Martin, also attended the speech.
Walt Nauta, who also faces federal charges over the Mar-a-Lago documents case, returned to New Jersey with the president, Trump’s spokesman said, but DailyMail.com did not see him in the audience for the speech.
A large group in the audience were Vietnamese Americans for America First, who were easy to spot as all the women wore the same red MAGA dress.
Trump told the audience that the prosecution was “the most vicious and heinous abuse of power in the history of our country.”
Senator Tommy Tuberville (left) stands next to Eric Trump (center) and Kimberly Guilfoyle (right), the fiancé of Donald Trump Jr.
Some Trumpworld favorites gathered in Bedminster Tuesday night, including My Pillow CEO Mike Lindell (left) and Sebastian Gorka (right), who briefly worked in the Trump White House
Several hundred Trump supporters came out to watch him speak, before a handful of people were invited to dinner with the ex-president as part of a $2 million fundraiser
Former NYPD Commissioner Bernie Kerik talks to guests Tuesday night ahead of Trump’s speech at his golf resort in Bedminster, New Jersey
Andrew Giuliani, who worked in the Trump administration and is the son of former New York mayor and Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani, was in Bedminster on Tuesday night
“I did everything right and they sued me,” he complained.
The former president suggested other political figures had gotten away with much worse.
“He lost the nuclear codes,” Trump claimed of Bill Clinton, whom he called a “nice guy.”
“They should have used him more as an advisor in the 2016 election,” Trump also joked, referring to how he beat Clinton’s wife Hillary in that year’s presidential election.
Trump also charged that George W. Bush’s White House “lost 22 million emails.”
“On the way to Dick Cheney’s house, a document destruction truck was spotted. Could you imagine?’ added the former president.
He spoke at length about Bill Clinton’s ‘socks’ case, which fact-checkers have already said it is not a valid comparison to what Trump is accused of doing.
When Trump paused to take a sip from a bottle of water, a member of the audience shouted “Happy Birthday!” at him.
He turned 77 on Wednesday.
“Happy birthday huh?” noted the ex-president.
Trump grinned as a crowd of supporters then sang “Happy Birthday” to him.
‘Happy Birthday. Happy birthday,’ he said.
‘I was with Eric and Lara and the kids – ‘Happy Birthday Grandpa!’ – I said oh great, I just got charged with, they want about 400 years, if you add them all up.
“A fake 400 years. So thank you darling, that’s so nice. It’s a great birthday,” the former president continued.
“We’re going to make it the best birthday of all.”