Trump arrives in Atlanta, talks about Fani Willis, stops at Chick-fil-A
ATLANTA - Former President Donald Trump arrived in Atlanta at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport shortly before 11:30 a.m. Wednesday for a luncheon fundraiser with local business leaders.
The 45th president is reportedly on a tour to raise money as he continues his campaign to return to the White House. Fox News reported he raised more than $50 million in Florida just days prior.
Trump greeted a couple of dozen supporters at the airport upon his arrival. He then answered several questions from the press.
Trump refrained from directly responding to a question about his opinion on abortion, emphasizing that it is a settled issue and up to the states to decide.
"For 53 years, it has been a fight," Trump stated. "Now, the states are handling it. Some have handled it very well and others will end up handling it very well. That’s something that the states will make a determination on."
He also criticized President Joe Biden.
When asked about Fani Willis' recent attempt to get his appeal of the disqualification ruling thrown out, Trump dismissed the case as "totally discredited" and labeled it as "election interference."
"I think that case has been totally discredited. It's on behalf of her and her lover, Wade. Mr. and Mrs. Wade. And I think the case has been totally discredited. I would hope, it seems to be. And we'll see how that ends. The one in New York is totally discredited. Every legal scholar said they have no case. It's a horrible thing, but it's election interference," Trump said.
Fox 5 reached out to District Attorney Fani Willis’ office for a response to Trump’s comments but her office stated they are declining to comment at this time.
Trump was also met by former senators Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue.
After Trump left the airport, he stopped at a Chick-fil-A on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive SW in the Vine City area.
While details had not officially been released, the Georgia Recorder reported that Trump was in town to attend a fundraiser luncheon with local business leaders and supporters like former U.S. Sens. David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler, Bernie Marcus, co-founder of Home Depot and Georgia Aquarium, Tommy Bagwell, a prominent figure in the poultry industry, Don Leebern III, known for his involvement in the beverage sector, and Bill White, an advocate for Buckhead.
The Georgia Recorder reported that attendance at the fundraiser was priced at $6,600, with an additional $25,000 fee per couple for a photo opportunity with the former president.
This was Trump's second visit to Georgia in a little more than a month. On March 9, he and President Joe Biden hosted dueling rallies in the state ahead of winning their respective primaries.
Recently, the former president asked a Fulton County Superior Court judge to dismiss the Fulton County election interference case on the grounds of free speech.
The indictment issued in August 2023 by a Fulton County grand jury accused Trump and 18 others of participating in a wide-ranging scheme to illegally try to overturn the 2020 presidential election in Georgia after the Republican incumbent narrowly lost the state to Biden. Trump’s attorneys argued that all the charges against him involved political speech that is protected even if the speech ends up being false.
But Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee wrote that at this pretrial stage he must consider the language of the indictment in a light favorable to the prosecution. The charges do not suggest that Trump and the others are being prosecuted simply for making false statements but rather that they acted willfully and knowingly to harm the government, he wrote.
Trump and his co-defendants have filed a new request asking McAfee to reexamine his dismissal.