Former US President Donald Trump will be formally charged at a court hearing on Thursday on charges of plotting to overturn his 2020 election defeat.
On the eve of the arraignment he slammed the case as proof of the “corruption, scandal, & failure” of the US under Joe Biden’s presidency.
Security is being ramped up in Washington DC for Thursday’s hearing.
Mr Trump already faces two other criminal cases as he campaigns for the White House next year.
But the election case is widely seen as the most serious one of all.
In an all-capital-letters post on his Truth Social platform on Wednesday, Mr Trump, who was at his Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club, thanked his followers and said: “I never had so much support on anything before.”
In other posts he attacked rival Republican presidential hopefuls, including his former Vice-President Mike Pence and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.
Mr Trump’s lawyers have hinted at their defence strategy.
Attorney John Lauro appeared on NBC’s Today show on Wednesday and said he planned to argue that Mr Trump was protected by the right to free speech enshrined in the First Amendment of the US Constitution.
“[The indictment] is criminalising speech,” Mr Lauro said.
Mr Trump’s legal team are also resisting the prosecutors’ desire for a speedy trial – saying they need time to organise their client’s defence.
A spokesman for the US Marshals Service, a federal law enforcement agency that guards courts, told Reuters news agency Mr Trump would be fingerprinted and asked to provide basic information, such as his date of birth and Social Security ID number.
Several other suspects accused of involvement in the US Capitol riot have had hearings that were scheduled for Thursday postponed.
Federal agencies and local police have been stepping up security measures in the nation’s capital ahead of Mr Trump’s trip.
The Secret Service, which provides protection to presidents and ex-presidents, released a statement warning the public of “short-term traffic implications” in central Washington DC.
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