Trump’s call for protests sparked the start of a three-day Florida retreat for Republicans in the US House of Representatives.
“I don’t think people should oppose it, no,” House Speaker Kevin McCarthy told reporters. “We want peace there.”
The Manhattan district attorney’s office earlier this month invited Trump to testify before a grand jury investigating the payments, a sign legal experts said could be imminent. A person familiar with the matter told that Trump turned down the offer.
No US president, either while in office or after, has faced criminal charges. Trump, who is seeking the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, has said he will continue campaigning even if he is charged with a crime.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office is investigating a $130,000 secret payment made by Cohen, Trump’s former fixer, to porn star Stormy Daniels during the 2016 presidential campaign.
The sources said Bragg’s office is presenting evidence to the grand jury about payments Daniels made in exchange for her silence about her affair with Trump a decade ago.
The grand jury will determine whether there is enough evidence to formally charge Trump with a crime. The proceedings are not public.