By Tara Kavaler and Ronald J. Hansen || The Arizona Republic
Members of Arizona’s Capitol Hill delegation reacted quickly Thursday to news that a New York grand jury voted to indict former President Donald Trump.
Trump becomes the first former president to ever be indicted. While the charges remain sealed, the indictment is related to two hush money payments with two women who reportedly had sex with Trump, who also is seeking the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.
The national debate exploded across social-media platforms and TV screens, with Democrats generally emphasizing that no one is above the law in the United States and Republicans generally denouncing the development as part of a sham political prosecution.
Arizona’s congressional delegation tended to split along those same lines.
“We’re a country of laws, and nobody is above the law,” U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., said in an emailed statement. “The former president has constitutional rights and presumption of innocence, as any other American does. I have faith in our justice system and remain focused on addressing the issues facing Arizonans and our country.”
U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz., hinted in a written statement to The Arizona Republic that Trump’s prosecution wasn’t the outrage many on the right have claimed.
“Politicians aren’t above the law,” she said. “This is an ongoing case and we won’t comment as the judicial system plays out.”
Throughout Trump’s four years in the White House, Sinema generally avoided weighing in on his many controversies.
Sinema twice voted to convict Trump during his impeachment trials in 2019 and 2021.
