Donald Trump’s former U.S. Attorney General, Bill Barr, said that he was shocked to hear about how many documents Trump had in his possession and the level of sensitivity.
"Even if half of it is true, then he's toast. I mean, it's a very detailed indictment, and it's very, very damning," Barr said in an interview on "Fox News Sunday." "He was totally wrong that he had the right to have those documents. Those documents are among the most sensitive secrets that the country has."
He also pushed back against the former president’s belief that he was the victim of a politically motivated witch hunt.
"This idea of presenting Trump as a victim here—a victim of a witch hunt—is ridiculous," Barr said. "Battle plans for an attack on another country," Barr continued, "are, in no universe, Donald J. Trump’s personal documents."
Trump later responded to Barr's comments, writing on Truth Socialthat the former attorney general was spreading "misinformation." He even went as far as to call him a "gutless pig" and a "disgruntled former employee."
The former president, now facing a second indictment, is scheduled to be arraigned in federal court Tuesday over an investigation into his handling of classified documents.
FBI agents found more than 100 classified documents at his home in Florida back in August.
The indictment against Trump says he stored the boxes filled with documents in various locations at the Mar-A-Lago Club in Palm Beach, including a bathroom, and accuses Trump of showing the classified documents to others at least two times in 2021.
Conservatives split on Trump's future amid criminal indictment
Opinions are split between those who believe Trump should drop out of the 2024 presidential race and those who say he still has their votes.
Barr is not the only Republican speaking up against Trump’s actions; former Arkansas Governor and presidential candidate Asa Hutchinson on CNN’s "State of the Union" on Sunday said the allegations should be taken seriously and that Trump’s actions are not a good representation for the U.S.
"My point is that this is bad for our country, bad for the presidency, and it is a legitimate campaign issue. We do not need to have our commander in chief of this country not protecting our nation’s secrets," said Hutchinson. "If these allegations and probable cause had been found against any military person, any public servant that wasn't named Donald Trump, they would have been indicted a long time ago."
Nonetheless, several Republican leaders and Trump allies, including U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, have defended Trump, saying he did nothing wrong.
"So if he wants to store, if he wants to store material in a box in a bathroom, if he wants to store it in a box on a stage, he can do that. That is the, that, that is just what the law and the standard is. So again, I think this just underscores how political this whole thing is," said Jordan.
Vivek Ramaswamy, Trump’s 2024 presidential election GOP opponent, even stated that he would pardon Trump if he were to be elected president.
Trump responded to the indictment, posting on his social media platform that he was innocent and telling Politico he would continue to run for president even if he were convicted in the case.
Legally, he can still run for president, even from prison if he were to be arrested. So, it’ll be up to voters to decide whether to vote for him or not.
