Alexei Navalny's thoughts on Trump re-election revealed in letter: "Really scary"
Kharp, Russia - Newly released letters written by Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny in the months leading up to his death revealed his thoughts on the idea of Donald Trump serving a second term as President of the United States.
While Navalny was serving a 19-year sentence in a Siberian prison colony, he regularly wrote letters to his close friend Evgeny Feldman.
In one such letter obtained by The New York Times on Monday, Navalny briefly shared his thoughts on US politics, making the prediction that if President Joe Biden were to suffer from some sort of health issue, then "Trump will become president" for a second term, which he described as "really scary."
"Doesn't this obvious thing concern the Democrats?" he added.
Navalny died last Friday after reportedly losing consciousness while taking a walk. As Navalny was a prominent critic of Russia's President Vladimir Putin, his death has drawn powerful condemnations from leaders around the world, starting with President Biden, who has squarely blamed Putin.
Donald Trump faced backlash for silence over Navalny's death
Several days later, Trump shared a post on his Truth Social platform where he mentioned Navalny but went on to connect it to his own political and legal issues without any mention of Putin.
"The sudden death of Alexei Navalny has made me more and more aware of what is happening in our Country," he wrote. "It is a slow, steady progression, with CROOKED, Radical Left Politicians, Prosecutors, and Judges leading us down a path of destruction."
Trump's delayed reaction came after his political rival Nikki Haley called him out for his silence, arguing, "either he sides with Putin... or he just doesn't think it's that big of a deal."
Cover photo: Collage: Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV & Alastair Pike / AFP