New Yorkers celebrate Trump indictment: ‘We should be popping champagne’

Tribune Content Agency

NEW YORK — New Yorkers beamed with pride Thursday as former President Donald Trump was indicted in his hometown.

“This is like a holiday,” Lisa Fithian, 62, told The New York Daily News. “We should be popping champagne. This is a historic day. It’s a long time coming. We’re grateful for the DA and the courage of the grand jury.”

She was standing with a small group of anti-Trump demonstrators at Collect Pond Park, paces away from Manhattan Criminal Court. They had a 20-by-15-foot banner that blared, “Trump Lies All the Time.”

“We’re thrilled to be here,” said Fithian, 62. “Trump is such a bully and he’s done so much harm.”

There was a celebratory mood at Washington Square Park, too.

“Hallelujah!” exclaimed Jack Scheinbaun, 19, a student who lives in the East Village.

“It’s time to face the music. You can’t just get away with this s—t forever,” he said.

Marco Sesay took a long view of Trump’s troubled time in office, noting the many fruitless investigations into the former president.

“It’s a good start to get more dirt on him,” said the 23-year-old analyst. ” I feel like he’s been dodging criminal cases for literally since he’s been in office.

“So yeah, I’m not mad that he’s been indicted.”

For his part, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg ignored reporters’ questions as he emerged from his office next to the courthouse with a large security detail.

He climbed into a large, black SUV with tinted windows and was whisked off around 4:15 p.m. without saying a word.

Outside Trump Tower in Midtown, a man leaned out of his car and yelled, “Racist, fat pig!”

A handful of reporters and tourists milled around the Fifth Ave. entrance to Trump’s NYC headquarters, waiting to see if anything would happen.

Kathe Frank of Somers, New York, wished the former president well.

“I’m hoping it goes well for Trump,” she said as she waited for her husband. “I’m a Trump supporter.”

“It’s politics. It’s not Boy Scouts,” added Frank, 69. “It’s people who want a lot of power. It’s not church.”

Some speculated that the indictment will help Trump as he seeks the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.

“He’s not afraid of any publicity,” said Frank, who added that she’s planning to vote for him.

“I think his fanbase will like him more because they like when he gets in trouble for things that they feel they could do,” Kita Rich, 34, said in Washington Square Park.

Back at Trump Tower, a pair of tourists weighed in.

“He should go to jail,” said Teresa Traba, 58, of Spain. “He’s to blame for the attempt to overthrow the government.”