Former Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez reportedly said on Friday former President Trump “should serve time” if convicted on federal charges related to his efforts to overturn the 2020 election
“If in fact he’s convicted of the crimes charged by Jack Smith and the Department of Justice …yeah, I think he should serve time, quite frankly,” Gonzalez told Jen Psaki during a recent interview.
In a grand jury indictment earlier this month, a Washington grand jury accused Donald Trump of trying to maintain power after losing the 2020 election.
The Justice Department (DOJ) alleged in 45-page indictment that Trump had engaged in a campaign of “dishonesty, fraud and conceit” to undermine the democracy.
There are four counts against Trump: conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding, and conspiracy against rights.
In the two charges relating to obstructing an official proceeding, the maximum sentence is 20 years in prison; in the case of conspiracy against rights, the maximum sentence is 10 years; and in the case of conspiracy to defraud the United States, the maximum sentence is five years.
The U.S. government alleges that Trump led a conspiracy to defraud the country and was central to a campaign to stop the certification of votes on Jan. 6, 2021.
A constitutional right to vote for a candidate of one’s choice is alleged to have been violated by Trump, according to his indictment.
A start date for the trial was proposed by the DOJ for Jan. 2, while a start date of April 2026 has been suggested by Trump’s team.
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