Kristi Noem, the Republican governor of South Dakota, added: “Using the criminal justice system in this way is un-American.” Some of Mr. Trump’s supporters said he was “bearing witness” and that could help him secure the Republican presidential nomination in 2024. But others said it would be too damaging to his chances and would mean Republicans would turn to other candidates, including former Vice President Mike Pence and Florida Gov. Ron DeSandis. A Republican donor who recently met with Mr Trump at Mar-a-Lago told the Telegraph he would “open up the 2024 primary for the Republicans”. He said: “The Trump era is over and it’s anybody’s ball. I think the biggest winner here is Mike Pence.” He added: “This is a terrible precedent. Every president going forward is going to be prosecuted for something.” David Axelrod, Barack Obama’s former chief strategist, said it would make Trump more likely to run for the White House again. He said: “This has never happened before in the history of this country. The idea that they would raid the home of a former president is the biggest bet you can have. “Merrick Garland is a notoriously cautious person. He wouldn’t have authorized this unless they believed they had substantial evidence that a crime had been committed.”
