State Department ripped as 'tone deaf' for tweet after Trump charged in federal court
Conservatives and supporters of former President Donald Trump erupted over the weekend after Secretary of State Antony Blinken issued a tweet condemning Russia’s prosecution of opposition leader Aleksey Navalny.
A Russian court convicted Navalny on charges of extremism and sentenced him to 19 years in prison on Friday, one day after Trump was arraigned in federal court on charges related to the 2020 presidential election and the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021.
"The United States strongly condemns Russia’s conviction of opposition leader Aleksey Navalny on politically motivated charges," Blinken tweeted Friday. "The Kremlin cannot silence the truth. Navalny should be released."
Secretary of State Antony Blinken and former President Donald Trump (Fox News)
TRUMP INDICTED ON CHARGES OUT OF SPECIAL COUNSEL PROBE INTO JAN. 6
The secretary of state’s tweet came one day after Trump, the current front-runner in the 2024 Republican presidential primary, was arraigned on federal charges alleging that he had orchestrated a plan to overturn the results of the 2020 election against President Biden.
The United States strongly condemns Russia’s conviction of opposition leader Aleksey Navalny on politically motivated charges. The Kremlin cannot silence the truth. Navalny should be released.
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) August 4, 2023
The former president has pleaded not guilty to charges of 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.
Former President Donald Trump speaks at the 56th Annual Silver Elephant Dinner hosted by the South Carolina Republican Party on Aug. 5, 2023, in Columbia, South Carolina. (Melissa Sue Gerrits/Getty Images)
Trump could face another indictment for alleged election meddling in Georgia as soon as Monday.
Critics who argue Trump is being politically prosecuted called Blinken’s tweet condemning Russian state prosecutors "ironic," "tone-deaf" and "tyrannical."
The Twitter account for the pro-Trump super PAC, MAGA Inc, hit the Biden administration for not being able to "get its story straight."
The Biden administration can't get its story straight. Are politically motivated charges against opposition politicians bad or good? https://t.co/fIyBaPay4m
— MAGA War Room (@MAGAIncWarRoom) August 4, 2023
"Exactly ZERO self awareness!!!" Donald Trump Jr. tweeted. "You really ceded the moral high ground here… Wonder where they got the idea that it’s acceptable to jail your political opposition?"
Exactly ZERO self awareness!!!
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) August 5, 2023
You really ceded the moral high ground here… Wonder where they got the idea that it’s acceptable to jail your political opposition? https://t.co/b8W0DFvm2T
"The lack of self-awareness is astounding," GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy tweeted.
The lack of self-awareness is astounding. https://t.co/hbhLVVndFU
— Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) August 5, 2023
"Incredible. You can’t even make this up. Now do Trump," Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene tweeted.
Incredible. You can’t even make this up.
— Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@RepMTG) August 5, 2023
Now do Trump. https://t.co/R50aV1eGkG
The absolute gall of Democrats. https://t.co/xep7GyXx8t
— Jenna Ellis (@JennaEllisEsq) August 6, 2023
Yes. It is indeed wrong when leaders weaponize government institutions to harass and persecute their political opponents. https://t.co/9jXX8meXvQ
— Rep. Tom Tiffany (@RepTiffany) August 5, 2023
Kremlin can’t silence truth? What about DC? Call for your geriatric boss to pardon Assange and Snowden, then let’s talk. https://t.co/sEBiwdp4bg
— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) August 5, 2023
This is not a parody account 👇 https://t.co/2GF9fMMU28
— Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) August 5, 2023
Regimes that prosecute opposition leaders on politically motivated charges deserve strong condemnation. https://t.co/mJCnfF9Xip
— Mike Lee (@BasedMikeLee) August 4, 2023
Evidently jailing political opponents is bad in other countries but not in the United States.
— Eric Schmitt (@Eric_Schmitt) August 4, 2023
The Left is obsessed with Trump and they are doing incredible damage to our republic.
TDS is real. https://t.co/NIiZFgxl7G
Siri, show me irony. https://t.co/jUNkewEP2W
— Rep. Mike Collins (@RepMikeCollins) August 5, 2023
Aren't you glad we don't live in a country where the ruling party jails its opposition on politically motivated charges? That would be tyrannical. https://t.co/6GkL34IOcZ
— Rep. Keith Ammon (@RepKeithAmmon) August 5, 2023
You interfered with the 2020 US election by pushing a fake story that Hunter Biden’s laptop was “Russian disinformation” - it wasn’t. But you pushed the Chinese government’s preferred talking point.
— Richard Grenell (@RichardGrenell) August 5, 2023
You’ve lost any credibility and moral authority to lecture others. https://t.co/ZlNE81H4A0
Tone. Deaf. https://t.co/OG2ocRfyDz
— Caitlyn Jenner (@Caitlyn_Jenner) August 5, 2023
This is not a @TheBabylonBee headline. This is a real tweet. https://t.co/etrNgrwg3X
— Roseanne Barr (@therealroseanne) August 5, 2023
The White House and DOJ did not respond to requests for a rebuttal to the criticism. When reached by Fox News Digital Sunday morning, the State Department pointed to a statement Friday by its spokesman further condemning Russia.
"By conducting this latest trial in secret and limiting his lawyers’ access to purported evidence, Russian authorities illustrated yet again both the baselessness of their case and the lack of due process afforded to those who dare to criticize the regime," the statement read, in part. "We once again join Mr. Navalny’s family, colleagues, and supporters around the world in calling for his immediate release, and an end to the continued repression of independent voices in Russia."
Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks at the launch of the Bureau of Global Health Security and Diplomacy at the State Department in Washington, D.C., on Aug. 1, 2023. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images))
The statement came the same day that Trump posted an alleged threat following his arraignment.
"IF YOU GO AFTER ME, I'M COMING AFTER YOU!" the former president declared on his Truth Social website.
The Justice Department responded to Trump's post by urging a federal judge overseeing his case to issue a protective order against him, which would limit the information he and his legal team would be allowed to share publicly about the case.
U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan gave Trump's lawyers until the end of the day on Monday to respond to the proposed order, but Trump's legal team has filed a document requesting an extension until Aug. 10.
Jessica Chasmar is a digital writer on the politics team for Fox News and Fox Business. Story tips can be sent to