The indictment of former President Donald Trump by federal prosecutors is casting a long shadow over the 2024 Republican primary.

But the field, widening in response to Trump and chief rival Gov. Ron DeSantis's (R-FL) perceived political weaknesses, appears unsure about how to deal with special counsel Jack Smith bringing criminal charges against Trump, at least over his handling of classified documents, as they simultaneously cast doubt over the Justice Department's independence.

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"Hardcore" Trump voters can rationalize anything, so he will retain much of his support, according to former Republican staffer John Pitney, now a Claremont McKenna College politics professor.

"But more indictments will hurt him at the margins," Pitney told the Washington Examiner. "The Mar-a-Lago case is powerful because it is simple. The charge boils down to two words: Trump stole."

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis also has a case against Trump concerning election interference in Georgia.

At the same time, Trump experienced momentum in early polls after Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg indicted the former president over alleged hush money payments he made to cover up extramarital affairs before the 2016 election. Trump's support was averaging 46% last spring on the day Bragg confirmed the charges, according to RealClearPolitics, 16 percentage points ahead of DeSantis. Trump's share of the vote now averages 53%, 31 percentage points ahead of the governor.

As it stands, only two candidates have directly criticized Trump for allegedly knowingly taking national security-related classified information with him when he departed the White House and sharing it with someone without a clearance. Their criticisms came after Smith advised the former president he was a "target" in his investigation.

Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, who was forceful in his criticism of Trump after Bragg indicted him in New York, called on the former president to withdraw his candidacy over the Smith developments. He also urged the Republican National Committee to revise the pledge of support it is requiring of contenders to participate in its debates to exclude a nominee "found guilty of espionage or a serious felony."

The pledge created a problem for former Vice President Mike Pence as well after he announced his own campaign this week with an address contending Trump "should never be president of the U.S. again" because he asked Pence to choose between him and the Constitution on Jan. 6. But shortly afterward, Pence conceded he would support Trump should he secure the Republican nomination.

Later that night, during a televised town hall, Pence tried to strike a balance by asserting "no one is above the law," but indicting a former president sends a "terrible message to the world."

"I would just hope that there would be a way for them to move forward without the dramatic and drastic, and divisive step of indicting a former president of the United States," he told CNN. "We have got to find a way to move our country forward and restore confidence in equal treatment under the law in this country. We really do."

The next day, Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), who announced his candidacy last month, described the possibility of an indictment as "a serious, serious challenge" for Trump, but he remained adamant that the cycle's "determining factor" should be the voters.

"It is very, very dangerous to see and/or feel like the Department of Justice is being weaponized against anyone in this country," he told Hugh Hewitt. "I will say that that puts a cloud over the entire process. I want the voters of 2024 to have a chance to prove that we want to have the power of persuasion in the presidency of the United States, and I am hoping that they will choose me, to allow me to be the president who persuades the American people to find common sense and common ground."

But former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who announced his 2024 bid this week with a promise to go "through Trump," dismissed the former president's complaints about his legal issues as being "self-inflicted."

"If, in fact, you're keeping those things knowingly, even after the government has asked for you to bring them back, the excuses about, 'Oh, they were classified, declassified automatically when I left the office,' well, that's just wrong. I mean, I know that as a legal matter," he told Fox and Friends. "By the way, that's weight that Donald Trump will have to carry if he's the nominee into a general election in November, and why do we want to take that risk?"

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Meanwhile, President Joe Biden, likely Trump's would-be general election opponent, has insisted the Justice Department operates independently of the White House, as the former president and his supporters attack the department while maintaining his innocence.

"I have never once, not one single time suggested to the Justice Department what they should do or not do relative to bringing a charge or not bringing a charge," Biden said Thursday. "I'm honest."