Pelosi Says 2nd Trump Term ‘Cannot Happen,’ Calls Indictments Against Him ‘Beautiful’

Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) in Washington on March 22, 2023. Paul Morigi/Getty Images for Protect Our Care

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said that the various federal indictments against former President Donald Trump are “beautiful” while insisting that a second Trump term in the White House “cannot happen.”

Ms. Pelosi made the remarks in an interview with New York magazine, in which she said she was already convinced on Jan. 6, 2021, that Mr. Trump “had committed a crime.”

Convinced he was robbed of victory in the 2020 election by a range of tactics, including last-minute legal changes to state election rules that Mr. Trump said made it easier to cheat, he spoke at a rally on Jan. 6, 2021, in which he called on his supporters to make their views known peacefully.

Later in the day, a large crowd of unclear affiliation stormed the U.S. Capitol, with some engaging in acts of vandalism and violence, while Mr. Trump publicly called for people not to behave aggressively and go home.

Protesters gather at the police line on the west side of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Special to The Epoch Times

There has been widespread speculation that undercover FBI agents were among the crowd and that they may have played a role in instigating the riot on Jan. 6, allegations that FBI Director Christopher Wray has dismissed as false.

‘Election Interference’: Trump

Special counsel Jack Smith has charged Mr. Trump with multiple felonies in connection with the Jan. 6 Capitol breach. The former president faces one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, one count of conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, one count of obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding, and conspiracy against the rights of citizens.

Mr. Trump has pleaded not guilty and has called the Jan. 6 case against him an act of election interference meant to thwart his presidential bid in 2024.

In addition to the Jan. 6 case, Mr. Trump faces a number of other investigations, some criminal, which he maintains are all part of a long-standing wide-ranging effort by his political opponents to hamstring his campaign.

“Election interference!” Mr. Trump wrote on Monday in his latest post on Truth Social, in which he shared a video claiming that a team of “unscrupulous accomplices” has been assembled to “get Trump.” The group, which the video labels as the “Fraud Squad,” points the finger at several prosecutors and district attorneys involved in legal proceedings against Mr. Trump, including Mr. Smith, whom the former president has repeatedly called “deranged.”

Special counsel Jack Smith speaks to the press at the Department of Justice building in Washington, on August 1, 2023. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

By contrast, in her interview with New York magazine, Ms. Pelosi praised the various legal efforts targeting Mr. Trump, including two recent criminal indictments—one relating to classified documents stored at the former president’s Mar-a-Lago home and the other focusing on Jan. 6.

“The indictments against the president are exquisite,” Ms. Pelosi told the outlet.“They’re beautiful and intricate, and they probably have a better chance of conviction than anything that I would come up with.”

Asked for her thoughts about a possible second term for Mr. Trump, the former speaker reacted with trepidation.

“Don’t even think of that,” she said. “Don’t think of the world being on fire.”

Ms. Pelosi then added, “it cannot happen, or we will not be the United States of America.”

“If he were to be president,” Ms. Pelosi continued, “it would be a criminal enterprise in the White House.”

Then-Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi delivers remarks at a press conference at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Oct. 31, 2019. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Trump Cases

Mr. Trump, who is the front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, faces a bevy of court dates over the next year that could pose a challenge to his campaign.

So far no trial date has been announced in the former president’s newest criminal case, an indictment related to his challenges to the 2020 election.

The presiding judge in that case, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, has asked prosecutors to file a requested trial date by Aug. 10, while Mr. Trump’s legal team has been given until Aug. 17 to respond to that filing. A trial date is expected to be set during an Aug. 28 conference, court filings show.

In another criminal case against Mr. Trump involving allegations that he hoarded military secrets at his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida, the judge has ordered a trial date on May 20, 2024.

In another criminal case, a New York grand jury has indicted Mr. Trump on 34 felony counts for allegedly falsifying business records in connection with a payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels before the 2016 presidential election. The judge has scheduled a March 2024 trial in this case.

Also in New York, Mr. Trump faces a civil lawsuit brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James, alleging fraud. That trial is expected to start in October 2023.