Former President Donald Trump was mocked online after his call for his supporters to protest his potential indictment backfired stupendously.
Over the weekend, Trump had called on his supporters to protest his expected indictment. In response, the New York Police Department (NYPD) set up metal barricades outside the Manhattan Criminal Court and Trump Tower in anticipation of potential chaos.
However, when Monday arrived, only a small number of Trump's supporters actually showed up to protest. Less than fifty people gathered outside the courthouse, with more reporters, dog walkers and passersby in attendance.
Gavin Wax, president of the New York Young Republican Club, later revealed that the protest was hastily thrown together over a 24 hour period.
Wax explained that the protest was intended to be low-key, even though earlier in the day, he had predicted a higher number of protestors. He referred to Trump's impending indictment as a "politicized prosecution and persecution without any merit."
While a small group of Trump supporters gathered outside the courthouse, Trump's detractors gathered outside Trump Tower. They held up signs accusing Trump of seditious conspiracy and calling for his arrest.
Initially, Trump was expected to be indicted on Tuesday, March 21. However, rumors suggest that it might not happen until Wednesday, which is the next time the grand jury investigating the alleged hush money payment is expected to meet, or possibly later in the week.
Trump's failure was mocked online.
Trump's indictment is expected to relate to a $130,000 payment made to porn star Stormy Daniels in the final days of Trump's 2016 presidential campaign. It is one of several potential criminal cases facing Trump, with investigations into his handling of classified documents and his role in the Capitol riot also underway.
Naturally, Trump's biggest supporters have attempted to excuse the hush money payment and campaign finance fraud violations which were in part what landed Trump's former attorney and fixer Michael Cohen in prison.
Earlier, Fox News personality Tucker Carlson was criticized after he spoke out in defense of Trump amid a possible indictment. He said hush money payments are "common, both among famous people, celebrities and in corporate America," a claim that subjected him to considerable derision.
