After former President Donald Trump was found guilty in his Manhattan criminal trial Thursday, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign applauded the unanimous verdict.
The verdict came after a six-week-long trial that proved Trump concealed hush money paid to porn star Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election. The 12-person jury found the former president of falsifying business records, eliciting both cheers and outcry from people across the country tuning in live to witness the verdict. Biden-Harris campaign spokesperson Michael Tyler issued a statement after the decision was announced, emphasizing that, regardless of the verdict, “the peril Trump represents to our democracy has never been more acute” and urging the public to vote for Biden in the November 2024 election.
“In New York today, we witnessed that no one is above the law,” Tyler stated. “Donald Trump has always erroneously believed he would never face repercussions for breaking the law for his own personal benefit. However, today’s verdict does not diminish the fact that the American people are confronted with a straightforward reality. There is still only one way to keep Donald Trump out of the Oval Office: at the ballot box. Convicted felon or not, Trump will be the Republican nominee for president.”
Trump, who has already denounced the trial as a scam and pledged to appeal the decision, expressed his indignation on the social media app. The former president that his “civil rights have been completely violated” with the “highly political, unconstitutional, and election interfering witch hunt.”
“This was a disgrace—a rigged trial by a conflicted judge who is corrupt,” he on the social media platform. “We will fight for our constitution—this is long from over!”
The Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, that Thursday was “a shameful day in American history.”
“Democrats cheered as they convicted the head of the opposing party on absurd charges, based on the testimony of a disbarred, convicted felon. This was a purely political exercise, not a legal one,” Johnson said. “The weaponization of our justice system has been a hallmark of the Biden Administration, and the choice today is further proof that Democrats will stop at nothing to quiet opposition and crush their political rivals.”
“The American people perceive this as lawfare, and they understand it is wrong—and dangerous,” he added. “President Trump will rightfully appeal this ridiculous verdict—and he WILL TRIUMPH!”
Some Democrats commended the verdict, including , who described the decision as a triumph.
“Donald Trump is a convicted felon,” Swalwell . “This verdict is not a triumph for any individual. It is an achievement for an ideal. The notion that we all adhere to the same rules. The rule of law prevailed today.”
Republican politicians and Trump allies swiftly denounced the verdict, with some labeling it and
“This is a dark day for our nation—where the very justice framework that had been a cornerstone of justice for centuries has been supplanted with a two-tiered system based on politics!” Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, a Republican, . “I do have faith that the American people will not tolerate this!”
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who initiated the charges against Trump, expressed gratitude to the jurors and prosecution team during a press conference Thursday evening following the announcement of the verdict.
“While this defendant may be different from any other in American history, we arrived at this trial, and ultimately today at this verdict, in the same manner as every other case that comes through the courtroom doors—by adhering to the facts and the law and doing so without fear or favor,” Bragg said.
“I carried out my obligation. We fulfilled our duty. Many voices out there. The only voice that holds sway is the voice of the jury. And the jury has spoken.”
When questioned about Trump’s sentencing, Bragg said, “I’m going to let our words in court speak for themselves when we get to the sentencing…”
Trump supporters assembled outside the Manhattan courthouse and voiced their objections after the verdict was declared.
“There is no justice in this country!” one shouted.
“Not f-cking guilty!” another exclaimed.
Concurrently, anti-Trump protesters congregated outside the courthouse to recount the charges on which Trump was found guilty. Many carried signs stating, “Not Above The Law” and “Lies Have Consequences.”
Trump’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for July 11.
