Rep. Michael Waltz on Mar-a-Lago raid: 'We're going to get to the bottom of this'
Rep. Michael Waltz, R-Fla., sounds off in the aftermath of the FBI's recent Mar-a-Lago raid and their seizure of Rep. Scott Perry's, R-Fla., phone the following day.
The FBI's raid of former President Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate has prompted a feeding frenzy from several political groups and campaigns, both Democratic and Republican, as they fundraise ahead of the upcoming midterm elections.
The raid, according to Republican candidates who are using the incident to fundraise, is a representation of political overreach as Democrats fear Trump will soon announce he is making a run for the White House in 2024. Democratic candidates fundraising off of the raid, however, insist that this is about justice for alleged wrongdoing by the former president following the January 6 Capitol protests and are calling for their supporters to support their election efforts in an attempt to pursue additional accountability for Trump.
In Florida, incumbent GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is running for re-election to represent the Sunshine State, and one of his leading Democratic challengers, Florida Agricultural Commissioner Nikki Fried, both capitalized on the raid for fundraising efforts with two different positions.
"The FBI's raid of Mar-a-Lago is yet another escalation in the weaponization of federal agencies against the Regime's political opponents, while people like Hunter Biden get treated with kid gloves," DeSantis wrote in a campaign email sent to supporters on Tuesday. "The federal Regime is targeting those it dislikes for disfavored treatment. They are demanding we get in line or face the consequences."
TRUMP FBI RAID: HILLARY CLINTON APPEARS TO FUNDRAISE OFF MAR-A-LAGO SEARCH
From left to right: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former President Trump, Florida Democratic gubernatorial nominee Nikki Fried. (Tristan Wheelock/Bloomberg, Matias J. Ocner/Miami Herald/Tribune News Service, Michael B. Thomas)
"It is past time that elected representatives in Washington, D.C. stand up against this abuse of power using the constitutional power of Congress to hold these agencies accountable.… Let's make sure they stand up for our rights. No excuses," DeSantis added, including a link for donations to his campaign.
Fried, however, took aim at DeSantis in her fundraising attempt following the raid , accusing him of being a "Trump wannabe."
"Yesterday, the FBI raided Mar-a-Lago – Trump's home in Florida," Fried's campaign wrote in an email to supporters, blasting DeSantis for his remarks on Twitter about the raid. "This tweet is yet another example of DeSantis' complete disregard for the rule of law. But more than that, it proves that DeSantis isn't just a Trump wannabe – he's a Trump lackey, through and through."
Claiming that DeSantis "won't condemn Nazis" or "won't condemn January 6," the Fried campaign said Floridians need a governor "who believes in the rule of law and upholds the American values of truth and justice" as she included a link to donate to her campaign.
Karoline Leavitt, a Republican candidate in the race to represent New Hampshire's First Congressional District in the state's September 13 primary election, shared a few videos to Facebook on Tuesday that questioned the FBI's raid of Mar-a-Lago and included a link where donations could be made to her campaign.
"If the corrupt DC institutions are willing to go after a former president, we have no reason to believe they won’t come after conservatives like me and you," she wrote. "We can’t wait for the political class in D.C. to make this right, we have to step up ourselves. President Trump always had our back and now it’s time we have his."
A LOOK AT INVESTIGATIONS INVOLVING TRUMP FROM RUSSIA TO MAR-A-LAGO
Following the raid, GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who is running for re-election to represent the Georgia's 14th Congressional District, shared a post to social media promoting t-shirts and hats that read "Defund the FBI" which were being sold at limited supply in her merchandise store.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., during President Biden's State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress, at the Capitol in Washington on March 1, 2022. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, Pool, File)
"Biden's FBI just raided Mar-a-Lago. Never before in the history of our country has this happened before," Greene wrote in the ad for the merchandise on Facebook. "President Trump needs you now more than ever. The FBI must be held accountable. Claim your gear NOW."
The Equality PAC, a political arm of the Congressional LGBTQ Equality Caucus that is "dedicated to the full legal and societal equality for LGBTQ Americans," also used the raid to ask for donations.
"Every day, more news comes out about Trump's EGREGIOUS behavior and his disregard for the rule of law," the PAC stated in an email to its supporters this week. "LUCKILY, with Merrick Garland at the Department of Justice, we have a real chance of finally prosecuting Donald Trump for his crimes!"
"This move would be highly controversial, so we need to show Attorney General Merrick Garland he has the public support to prosecute Trump for his crimes," the PAC added, attaching links to a poll on wether Garland should prosecute Trump and a link to donate to the PAC.
FBI DIRECTOR CHRISTOPHER WRAY ‘CONCERNED’ ABOUT THREATS AFTER UNPRECEDENTED MAR-A-LAGO SEARCH
Similarly, the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC), a group that helps to elect Democrats to positions at a state level, used the raid of Trump's estate to issue a poll questioning whether Garland should prosecute Trump and included a donation link.
Several political organizations are asking their supporters to participate in polls that ask whether Attorney General Merrick Garland to prosecute former President Trump. (Greg Nash/Pool Photo via AP)
"A criminal investigation into Trump could provide critical information ahead of his likely 2024 presidential run – even potentially disqualifying him from office," the DLCC wrote. "Do you want AG Garland to prosecute Donald Trump?"
During an interview with Fox News Channel's "Fox and Friends" on Tuesday, Republican National Committee chairwoman Ronna McDaniel insisted that people must donate to Republican campaigns in an effort to push back on the actions from the Justice Department and the Biden administration.
"The first thing we have to do is win it back in 2022," McDaniel said. "We have to win back the House… we have to take the reins of power back. The only way to stop them is to win back the House and the Senate."
"Anybody listening, you've gotta engage in a campaign, you've gotta help donate to people like J.D. Vance and Herschel Walker and Adam Laxalt and Mehmet Oz and candidates across the country that are gonna need our help so we can get to the finish line and finally put checks on this power," she added.
Hillary Clinton also appeared to be fundraising off the FBI raid at Mar-a-Lago, promoting a hat sold through her political organization, Onward Together, on Tuesday that reads: "But her emails".
Hillary Clinton on Tuesday promoted hats sold through her political organization, Onward Together, that read: "But her emails" (David Becker/Getty Images)
"Every ‘But her emails’ hat or shirt sold helps @onwardtogether partners defend democracy, build a progressive bench, and fight for our values," Clinton wrote in a tweet issued Tuesday. "Just saying!"
Trump, himself, has also used the raid to fundraise as he is expected to announce his 2024 candidacy soon.
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In a fundraising email sent to Trump supporters on Tuesday, Trump's Save America political action committee insisted the former president is a victim of a "witch hunt" and "political persecution" following the raid.
On Monday, the FBI executed a "raid" on Trump’s Florida home and by that night, droves of social media posts criticized the incident and accused the bureau of being politicized.
Fox News' Lawrence Richard contributed to this report.
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