WASHINGTON — Just minutes after appearing in federal court to face dozens of charges that he illegally hoarded classified documents, former president Donald Trump made what amounted to a 2024 campaign stop.
Trump's first stop after court was the famous Cuban restaurant Café Versailles in Little Havana to meet with supporters and local politicians.
Inside, a group of people greeted him and laid hands on him in prayer. Those in the room also sang "Happy Birthday" to Trump, who will turn 77 on Wednesday.
"Some birthday. Some birthday," he said. "We've got a government that is out of control."
Versailles is a landmark that is a required stop for politicians visiting Miami. Cuban exiles gathered there to celebrate Fidel Castro’s death in 2016.
Trump's aide and co-defendant, Walt Nauta, joined him at the eatery, helping people take selfies with Trump.
At one point, the former president shouted "food for everyone."
Trump was indicted last week on 37 felony charges accusing him of willfully retaining classified documents and obstructing justice.
Trump’s 2024 Republican presidential rivals were largely refraining from public campaign events as the political world’s attention shifted to the former president’s appearance in federal court in Miami.
The former president is expected to deliver remarks Tuesday evening in New Jersey.
Speaking Tuesday morning outside the courthouse where Trump will be arraigned, Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy reiterated his commitment to pardoning Trump if elected to the White House. The wealthy biotech entrepreneur also announced that he'd given every 2024 presidential challenger signed commitment letters asking them to join him in the pledge.
Other Republican presidential hopefuls, including Trump’s former ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, planned fundraisers and media appearances while forgoing campaign events. South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott was heading to Iowa for a town hall event later in the week but had no public events scheduled for Tuesday. Trump is the Republican White House primary’s early front-runner. When he appeared in court in April on a separate criminal case involving alleged hush money payments, the attention was intense, dominating media coverage for many days.