Republican candidate for the White House Donald Trump compared himself to South African anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela. This prompted swift and furious criticism from President Joe Biden's campaign team.
The 77-year-old Trump is a defendant in four different criminal cases, all of which could end in prison for the billionaire real estate mogul.
In one of those cases, he is accused of paying hush money to a former porn star ahead of the 2016 presidential election, which he won over Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.
That trial is set to begin on April 15, and Judge Juan Merchan has imposed a partial gag order on Trump, who frequently attacks the judge on social media.
Trump has raged on his Truth Social platform, accusing Merchan of violating his First Amendment rights to free speech and expression and breaking the law, AFP reports.
"If this partisan hack wants to get me in a 'clinch' for speaking the open and obvious TRUTH, I will gladly become a modern day Nelson Mandela - it would be a GREAT HONOR to me," Trump wrote.
Mandela spent 27 years in prison before being released and eventually becoming president of South Africa. He died in 2013.
Trump has previously compared himself to Mandela at a rally in 2023 and also compared himself to Jesus Christ.
Biden's campaign team quickly went on the offensive after Trump's Saturday post.
"Imagine being so self-absorbed that you compare yourself to Jesus Christ and Nelson Mandela in the span of just over a week: that's Donald Trump for you," Biden's team said in a statement. /BGNES
