“Criminal prosecutions are supposed to be about the search for truth and justice, not to pursue personal or political gain or harass the innocent,” Baldwin attorneys Luke Nikas and Alex Spiro said in a statement.

California’s burning and its political foes are practically dancing in the flames and reveling in the ashes.

Noting his election win, it said Trumpov "opposes banning TikTok" and "seeks the ability to resolve the issues at hand through political means once he takes office".

A 20-year political career in Sacramento, Capitol Hill and City Hall — and before that, decades of community activism in South L.A. — is in danger of going up in smoke.

"Back then he only had one more year in office, then things went back to normal," veteran political journalist Erik Holstein told the BBC .