FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images
- Trump lawyer Joe Tacopina called their legal fight in Manhattan an "all-out war."
- He said Trump will surrender if indicted, but will be "loud and proud" when he does so.
- Tacopina's fighting words come after Trump on Saturday called for people to protest if he's arrested.
Trump lawyer Joe Tacopina had some fighting words for the Manhattan district attorney's office on Monday.
"At that point, this is an all-out war," Tacopina told podcast host Kimberly Guilfoyle — who is also Donald Trump Jr.'s fiancé. "Donald Trump is the toughest human being I've ever met. Most people crumble under allegations like this, and with the pressure he's under from political opponents weaponizing the justice system."
Tacopina said Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and his team "will be very sorry" if they bring charges against Trump.
Tacopina also echoed his own comments from Friday, saying his client will surrender if indicted. But the picture that Tacopina painted of a potential Trump surrender did not include an assurance that Trump will go quietly.
"They want him at 100 Centre Street? He'll be there, loud and proud," Tacopina said, referring to the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse. "And there's nobody that's gonna make him cower. But again, let's see where they go, let's see what the process is. This is all new to everybody, in the history of this country."
Tacopina's choice of the words "all-out war" comes after Trump on Saturday called for his supporters to protest.
Trump claimed without substantiation or evidence that he will be arrested on Tuesday in New York, and asked his supporters to come out in force to "PROTEST, PROTEST, PROTEST!!!"
"PROTEST, TAKE OUR NATION BACK!" Trump wrote on Truth Social, echoing his rhetoric before the deadly January 6 Capitol riot.
In January 2021, Trump was impeached for a second time after a Democratic-led House accused him of inciting an insurrection. Trump has continually denied that he was responsible for inciting violence. He also claimed in January 2021 that his speech before the Capitol riot — where he called on his supporters to "fight like hell" to take their country back — was "totally appropriate."
An indictment is now looming over Trump in New York over $130,000 in hush money payments made to the adult film actress Stormy Daniels. Daniels says she had an affair with Trump in 2006. Michael Cohen, Trump's former fixer turned nemesis, says he paid Daniels off — at Trump's direction — to keep her quiet about the affair before the 2016 election.
Bragg is currently investigating if Trump's payments to Daniels were an illegal campaign expense, and if they violate New York election and document laws. Trump has denied having an affair with Daniels and claimed he never paid her $130,000 to keep quiet about the relationship.
A grand jury is now hearing testimony from its final witnesses.
If Trump is arrested in New York, he will have to take a mugshot and be swabbed for DNA. He will be accompanied by Secret Service officers throughout.
Trump has already launched a series of preemptive attacks on Bragg. He and his team have sent out multiple Truth Social posts and email blasts in the last week attacking Bragg and spreading unsubstantiated rumors about the prosecutor.
Bragg has privately assured his employees that they will be protected from threats to the district attorney's office amid Trump's calls for protests.
"Our law enforcement partners will ensure that any specific or credible threats against the office will be fully investigated and that the proper safeguards are in place so all 1,600 of us have a secure work environment," Bragg wrote to his employees on Saturday, per Politico.
Tacopina did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.