Trump heads for New York as city girds for Tuesday arraignment

Former president Donald Trump has boarded his private plane and is flying from Florida toward New York, ahead of his expected booking and arraignment, as the nation’s largest city bolsters security and warns potential agitators that it is “not a playground for your misplaced anger.”

Trump’s ground journey from his Mar-a-Lago club to his red, white, and blue Boeing 757, emblazoned with “TRUMP” in gold letters was carried live on national television and took him past supporters waving banners and cheering the former president. Trump and his supporters criticize the case against him — stemming from hush money payments during his 2016 campaign — as politically motivated.

WATCH: Donald Trump's motorcade departs his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida as the former president heads to New York to face arraignment https://t.co/loy3kzMzbL pic.twitter.com/xzFnRSr9hN

— Bloomberg (@business) April 3, 2023

The scene is quite different in New York, where Trump built a national profile in business and entertainment, but became deeply unpopular as he moved into politics.

His return to the city opens an unprecedented chapter in American history, with Trump being the first former president to face criminal charges, even as he is in the midst of a third campaign for the White House. It is causing major legal, political, and cultural events collide in unprecedented ways.

The former president plans to spend the night at Trump Tower, then surrender to authorities on Tuesday for booking and a likely afternoon arraignment.

Trump Tower is open Monday, but authorities are planning to close nearby streets as Trump comes and goes, and additional security is also in the works. They have taken steps to close and secure the courthouse floor where the former president is set to appear for an arraignment Tuesday afternoon. He is expected to plead not guilty and to be released, pending a trial.