Outside Trump Tower, Democrat protesters clanged cowbells and commanded the former president to 'wake up and smell the justice'.
There was drama at the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse hours before Donald Trump's scheduled arraignment on Tuesday when some of his fervent supporters clashed with aggrieved protesters as the tension and anticipation surrounding his historic appearance built up.
The former US president is expected to leave Trump Tower for the downtown courthouse in Manhattan at 10.30 am today, flanked by a Secret Service and NYPD motorcade that will trigger rolling road closures, according to Daily Mail.
Outside Trump Tower, Democrat protesters clanged cowbells and commanded the former president to 'wake up and smell the justice'.
At the courthouse, journalists from around the world lined up through the night to ensure their space in the courtroom. After dawn, protesters on both sides descended on the building and were separated by NYPD barricades.
Trump fan Juliet Germanotta threw herself at an anti-Trump banner and attempted to rip it up. She was met with incredulity from the protesters who'd erected it and a scrappy back-and-forth ensued.
'You're on the wrong side!' yelled the anti-Trump crowd, grabbing at the flag that the woman was trying to remove in a clumsy tug of war.
A second Trump fan was heard yelling: 'Get out of here, you old bag of bones!'
Pushing herself into her counterpart's face, the Trump fan then threatened quietly: 'I have COVID!'
Elsewhere, a man carrying a sound boom and backpack angrily threatened others not to 'f**k with him'. It's unclear if he worked for a media outlet.
Disgraced Congressman George Santos made a surprise appearance and was warmly greeted by Germanotta, a well-known Republican protester.
The crowds of fans were nowhere near the size of those who gathered in Washington DC on January 6, 2021.
Instead, a handful of smaller groups and individuals turned out to show their support.
Among them was Ricardo “Ricky Superstar” Varano, a 62-year-old, 7/11 cashier from the Bronx.
'If he goes down, I’ll go down. I’ve got to do what I’ve got to do. I’m here to make people feel this is real, I’m with Donald Trump all the way. This indictment is phony. It’s a hoax.
'They have to find something because they see these rallies and they see he is building so they want to stop him.
'How can you stop people who are encouraging people and trying to make the world a better. We had no problems under him as president for four years. I’m going down to the courthouse!'
Julie Delaurier, 66, retired from Brooklyn, wearing a black T-shirt with Arrest Trump on it and holding a mock-up image of Trump behind bars, said, 'I am celebrating the fact that Trump will finally see the outside of the courtroom after decades of criminal enterprise. I face the same law and my son saw the inside of a courtroom for jumping a turnstile so I think Trump can for this too.
'He answers to the same law as you and I do and everyone else. We are finally seeing the rule of law,' she said.
Trump's attorneys say he will speak outside the courthouse before going inside, then will speak again afterwards before making his way back to his plane at LaGuardia airport. The arraignment begins at 2.15 pm.
The indictment - the first against any former US president - has been met with glee among Trump's political enemies and disgust among many Republicans, who see it as nothing more than a biased attempt by left-wing prosecutors to stop him from returning to office.
Some 34 felony counts are expected, though it remains unclear what those are.
In a Truth Social post last night, Trump fumed: 'D.A. BRAGG JUST ILLEGALLY LEAKED THE 33 points of Indictment.
'There are no changes or surprises from those he leaked days ago directly out of the Grand Jury.
'No Crime by Trump. What a MESS. Bragg should resign. NOW!'