A spokesperson for former President Donald J. Trump posted a video Monday showing him at a gun shop in South Carolina, stating that he had just purchased a Glock pistol.
The post on He looked at the dull gold firearm, a Trump special edition Glock that depicts his likeness and says “Trump 45th,” while visiting the Palmetto State Armory outlet in Summerville, SC. “I want to buy one,” he said twice in the video.
“President Trump is buying a @GLOCKInc in South Carolina!” his spokesperson, Steven Cheung, wrote in his post. The video showed Mr Trump among a small crowd of people and posing with a man holding the gun. A voice is heard saying, “That’s a big seller.”
The statement immediately caused an uproar and raised questions about whether such a purchase would be legal. Mr. Trump has been charged with dozens of crimes in two separate cases related to his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election and his possession of reams of classified documents after leaving office.
There were also questions about whether the store could sell a firearm to Mr. Trump if people there knew he was facing charges.
Federal prosecutors are asking a federal judge in the case accusing Trump of violating several laws in his efforts to remain in office to impose a limited silence order after he made repeated threats against prosecutors and witnesses in several cases against it. Mr. Trump’s lawyers had a deadline of late Monday evening to respond to the administration’s request for the order.
But within two hours of the initial social media post, Mr Cheung deleted his post and issued a statement saying: “President Trump did not purchase or take possession of the firearm. He simply indicated that he wanted one.”
A man who answered a phone registered to the store owner hung up when a reporter called. A salesperson at the Summerville location, who declined to give her name or answer additional questions, said Trump had not purchased a gun.
Mr. Trump is increasingly criticized by prosecutors, security experts and others for his language on his social media site Truth Social in connection with his trials.
At the Federal Bureau of Investigation, for example, officials have increasingly expressed concern about the threat of violence as Mr. Trump and his allies have targeted the agency.
Under the main federal gun law, 18 USC 922, it is illegal for dealers to sell firearms to people charged with crimes carrying sentences of more than one year. Charged defendants are also prohibited from sending or receiving weapons that have crossed state lines.
But the statute does not appear to prohibit people facing charges from simply purchasing or possessing guns.
