We are now less than twenty-four hours away from an unprecedented moment in American history, where a former president returns here to the nation’s capital to make his first appearance on charges of going after the bedrock of American democracy, a peaceful transfer of power. D.T is no stranger to the inside of a courthouse. This is his third indictment. These are the first charges to stand from actions T allegedly took while in office all in an attempt, according to special counsel to remain in power. The special counsel, J.S, called the January 6th attack an assault on the seat of American democracy that fueled by lies. T’s lawyers today claim the charges violate the former president’s First Amendment rights. But central to the indictment are contemporaneous notes from former Vice President M.P. And today, he lashed out at his former boss saying T was surrounded by “crackpot lawyers”.

Ahead of T’s arrival in Washington tomorrow, his lawyers are moving fast to build the defense. His former vice president is emerging as both a key witness and a key critic. And security officials are already on edge. Former President D.T spends the morning playing golf at his club in Bedminster, New Jersey as he and his lawyers brace for a high-stakes appearance in federal court. The sweeping indictment alleged T used dishonesty, fraud and deceit to try to overturn the legitimate results of the 2020 election by organizing slates of fraudulent electors in seven states that he lost, pushing officials like the Georgia Secretary of State. And pressuring then Vice President M.P to refuse to certify the election results. Sources say T’s lawyer plan to argue that T’s false claims about the election were criminal and that his efforts were driven by the advice of outside attorneys like S.P, R.G and J.E among others. CBSN has learned that they’re likely some of the six unindicted coconspirators referenced in the indictment.