When former President Donald Trump appears in federal court Tuesday, he will be joined at the defense table by a man well-practiced in standing by his side: his valet turned alleged co-conspirator, Walt Nauta.
Walt Nauta, left, takes a phone from Former President Donald Trump during the LIV Golf Pro-Am at Trump National Golf Club, Thursday, May 25, 2023, in Sterling, Va. When former U.S. President Donald Trump appears in federal court Tuesday, he will be joined at the defense table by a man well-practiced in standing by his side: his valet turned alleged co-conspirator, Walt Nauta.
Nauta, according to the indictment unsealed Friday, played a crucial role in the alleged scheme with Trump, who is charged with 37 counts of illegally hoarding classified documents and obstructing the government's efforts to get them back. Nauta was key to Trump's investigation early on, with FBI agents grilling him about the movement of boxes inside Mar-a-Lago weeks before serving their search warrant at the property. Like other witnesses close to Trump, though, his answers to law enforcement put him in legal jeopardy.
Nauta faces six federal charges, including conspiracy to obstruct justice, corruptly concealing a document or record and making false statements. His inclusion in the indictment was met by protest from Trump, who praised Nauta as "a wonderful man" who had "done a fantastic job!" "I think Walt is easy prey for the president because this is a dedicated patriot," he said. "The proudest moment he ever had was being named valet to the president and sadly the president he got named valet for was Trump."
John Dean, the White House counsel who testified against former President Richard Nixon over Watergate and later served four months for obstructing justice, said that he would advise Nauta to turn against Trump.As for Cohen, he gave grand jury testimony over the hush money payments that led to the first-ever criminal charges against a former president.
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