‘We’re not a Third World country’: George W. Bush's AG celebrates Trump indictment

A former Republican U.S. Attorney General who served in the George W. Bush administration on Thursday bucked his party by lauding the Justice Department’s prosecution of Donald Trump.

“We’re not a Third World country,” Alberto Gonzales said Thursday during an appearance on CNN’s “The Lead with Jake Tapper.”

“I think what we saw today is something that had to happen, quite frankly, given what we saw January 6,” Gonzales said.

“The fact that what we saw that day are scenes that we would see in a Third World country, and so I think this was important to tell the world to tell Americans that we are not a Third World country, that we are a nation that believes in the rule of law and we hold people accountable for their conduct. So this was absolutely necessary as far as I'm concerned.”

Gonzales said he’s read the latest indictment against the former president in the Jan. 6 election conspiracy and said he believes prosecutors have a strong case.

He said his biggest concern is the fiery rhetoric against the Department of Justice in particular.

“People have talked about how this is momentous, unprecedented and it certainly is, but from my perspective, what I'm most worried about, is the fact that, gosh, all of the rhetoric that's out there today,” Gonzales said.

“In my judgment, the attacks against the Department of Justice, the attacks against the rule of law, I think it's very, very dangerous. And I'm hopeful that we can get our leaders to step up and tell people to calm down.

“If they're going to communicate with each other, do it with civility and respect and try to really come to an understanding. “The defense has an opportunity to present its side of the story, Jack Smith will have an opportunity to present his side of the prosecution, and then we'll see what happens before a jury of President Trump's peers.”

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