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March 30, 2023 Trump indictment news

By Elise Hammond, Tori B. Powell, Amir Vera and Jessie Yeung, CNN

Updated 8:50 a.m. ET, March 31, 2023

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11:49 p.m. ET, March 30, 2023

Pence: Indictment of Trump "is an outrage"

Former Vice President Mike Pence speaks to CNN's Wolf Blitzer in Washington, DC. (CNN)

Former Vice President Mike Pence called the grand jury indictment of Donald Trump an "outrage."

"I think the unprecedented indictment of a former president of the United States on a campaign finance issue is an outrage," he said Thursday night, speaking to CNN's Wolf Blitzer during a CNN Primetime interview.

He said the indictment appears “for millions of Americans to be nothing more than a political prosecution."

Pence said charging the former president is a "disservice to the country" that will only divide people further.

"I think the American people will look at this and see it as one more example of the criminalization of politics in this country," he said.

Watch:

9:34 p.m. ET, March 30, 2023

Stormy Daniels' wasn't surprised and is relieved about Trump indictment, attorney says

CNN's Anderson Cooper speaks to Stormy Daniels' lawyerClark Brewster. (CNN)

Clark Brewster, the attorney of adult film star Stormy Daniels, said he was the one to share the news of Thursday's indictment with his client.

"She wasn't surprised because I really do believe over the last three or four weeks, particularly, it seemed to be likely or inevitable that an indictment would be returned," Brewster told CNN's Anderson Cooper. "But I think she's relieved. Really it's a fight against his rejection of the truth and his manufacturing of stories."

8:50 p.m. ET, March 30, 2023

Majority Leader Chuck Schumer releases statement on Trump indictment

From CNN's Samantha Beech

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer released the following statement after the announcement of Donald Trump's indictment:

“Mr. Trump is subject to the same laws as every American. He will be able to avail himself of the legal system and a jury, not politics, to determine his fate according to the facts and the law. There should be no outside political influence, intimidation or interference in the case. I encourage both Mr. Trump’s critics and supporters to let the process proceed peacefully and according to the law.”

8:38 p.m. ET, March 30, 2023

Manhattan grand jury heard from another witness before indictment vote, source says

From CNN's John Miller

Before the Manhattan grand jury voted to indict Donald Trump on Thursday, a witness gave about 30 minutes of testimony, a source familiar with the case tells CNN.

The witness’s identity isn’t publicly known. Grand jury proceedings are secret.

8:37 p.m. ET, March 30, 2023

Trump expected to appear in court Tuesday for arraignment

From CNN's Kara Scannell, Kaitlan Collins, Lauren del Valle and Evan Perez

Former President Donald Trump arrives to board his airplane for a trip to a campaign rally in Waco, Texas, at West Palm Beach International Airport, March 25. (Evan Vucci/AP/File)

Former President Donald Trump is expected to appear in court Tuesday for his arraignment, multiple sources tell CNN.

Judge Juan Merchan is expected to preside, one source said.

8:30 p.m. ET, March 30, 2023

SOON: Former Vice President Mike Pence joins CNN's Wolf Blitzer in one-on-one conversation

Former Vice President Mike Pence speaks at a law enforcement round table hosted by Republican candidate for Wisconsin governor Rebecca Kleefisch at the Ingleside Hotel on August 3, 2022, in Pewaukee, Wisconsin. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Former Vice President Mike Pence will join CNN's Wolf Blitzer for a one-on-one CNN Primetime conversation at 9 p.m. ET tonight.

The interview comes just hours after the historic indictment of former President Donald Trump by a Manhattan grand jury, marking the first time in American history that a current or former president will face criminal charges.

The CNN conversation also comes just days after a judge ruled Pence must testify about conversations he had with Trump leading up to January 6.

8:35 p.m. ET, March 30, 2023

Trump team will roll out surrogates and track who is loyal to him following indictment, according to sources

From CNN's Kristen Holmes

Former President Donald Trump and his team will be rolling out surrogates beginning Friday to hit Democrats, the investigation and District Attorney Alvin Bragg across various forms of media as they work to shape the public narrative, according to sources close to Trump.

His team will also keep track of members of Congress and 2024 potential Republican hopefuls who defend Trump. They plan to blast out those responses and likely go after those who do not rally around the former president.

Trump's team, while caught off guard by the timing of the indictment, has been working on a media plan to respond to the potential charges for the last two weeks.

Several advisers said that they were learning many of the details of the indictment and potential arraignment from media reports. There have been preliminary conversations on what getting Trump in and out of New York will look like.

8:43 p.m. ET, March 30, 2023

McConnell and Thune silent so far on indictment as Scott calls to investigate Manhattan DA

From CNN's Manu Raju

House GOP leaders have rushed to former President Donald Trump's defense, which shows the GOP's division over Trump, as top Senate Republicans Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and Senate Minority Whip John Thune have remained silent.

Republican Sen. Rick Scott is calling on Senate leadership to support House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s efforts to investigate Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.

"I fully support speaker McCarthy's efforts to investigate this. We are now living in a nation where people can't trust the legal process, FBI, DOJ, or IRS … and I will do all I can in the Senate to support @SpeakerMcCarthy's efforts. I call on Senate leadership to do the same," Scott tweeted Thursday.

8:15 p.m. ET, March 30, 2023

Trump faces more than 30 counts related to business fraud, sources tell CNN

From CNN's John Miller

Former President Donald Trump speaks during the America First Agenda Summit organized by America First Policy Institute AFPI on Tuesday, July 26, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post/Getty Images)

Former President Donald Trump faces more than 30 counts related to business fraud in an indictment from a Manhattan grand jury, according to two sources familiar with the case.

Earlier Thursday, a spokesperson for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said the office has contacted Trump's attorney to "coordinate his surrender" for arraignment on "a Supreme Court indictment, which remains under seal."

"Guidance will be provided when the arraignment date is selected," it added.

Trump will likely appear in court early next week, his defense attorney said.

CNN's Kara Scannell contributed reporting to this post.