News of former President Donald Trump's indictment on federal charges sent shock waves Thursday through the 2024 Republican presidential primary.
In a statement to Newsmax, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, who is running against Trump, characterized the indictment as "an affront to every citizen" and pledged to pardon the former president if elected.
"We cannot devolve into a banana republic where the party in power uses police force to arrest its political opponents," Ramaswamy said, noting that questions remain over Trump's ability to declassify documents.
He also took issue with the Department of Justice's decision to prosecute Trump, with President Joe Biden currently under investigation by special counsel Robert K. Hur for a similar reason.
"It would be much easier for me to win this election if Trump weren't in the race, but I stand for principles over politics," Ramaswamy said.
Ramaswamy's supportive comments are not out of character for the candidate, who has crossed the aisle to praise the former president several times throughout his campaign.
Trump once did the same through a statement by the Make America Great Again political action committee.
"The thing I like about Vivek is that he only has good things to say about President Trump and all that the Trump administration has so successfully done. This is the reason he is doing so well," Trump said last month.