He sat with his arms crossed the entire time and an expression of annoyance on his face as Judge Jonathan Goodman and Special Counsel Jack Smith read him the 37 counts of indictment against him from top-secret papers kept in his residence in Mar a Lago.

Then Donald Trump pleaded "not guilty" to all 37 charges. "We present a plea of not guilty," the tycoon's lawyer Todd Blanche told the judge.

Then the former president left the courthouse in Miami cheered by his supporters, who saluted from his car with a thumbs up. And then he stopped at a Cuban restaurant to meet some of his fans.

As already happened in Manhattan, Trump was temporarily in custody and had to complete all the paperwork before appearing in court. There was no need for a mugshot or handcuffs.

"It's a sad day for America," he wrote on his social media Truth before arriving in court. "We are a nation in decline, this is a witch hunt," he reiterated before returning to attack special prosecutor Jack Smith. “A thug, a madman and a Trump Hater, like all his friends and family. A corrupt person in the hands of Biden, he put the cards in the boxes ».

(Unioneonline/L)