What are GOPs who voted to impeach Trump saying about his conviction?
Some of the Republicans who previously risked their political careers to vote to impeach Donald Trump say the conviction against him in New York on Thursday was flawed. In 2021 seven GOP Senators and 10 House Republicans voted to convict and impeach Trump for inciting an insurrection. Trump, in turn, unleashed hellfire on them in the 2022 primaries and only two remain in the House. Only one in the Senate - Lisa Murkowski, Alaska - had been up for reelection.
Here's what they have to say about Trump being found guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business records for hush money payments to Stormy Daniels : Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., said: 'Given the way the defense was conducted, the trial was managed, the jury was instructed, and the DA's desire to fulfill a campaign promise, the guilty verdict was not surprising.'
He went on: 'The jury was led to believe that two misdemeanors make a felony and that a state court could enforce federal law. None of this seems right. The rule of law should apply equally to both parties. I disagree with the verdict.' Cassidy has been unafraid to criticize Trump in the past. He's repeatedly called on him to drop out of the running and called the race a 'sorry state of affairs' in March.
In April Trump knocked him right back. 'One of the worst Senators in the United States Senate is, without question, Bill Cassidy, A TOTAL FLAKE,' he wrote on Truth Social. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, one of the Senate's most prominent moderates, insisted the case was political. 'It is fundamental to our American system of justice that the government prosecutes cases because of alleged criminal conduct regardless of who the defendant happens to be. In this case the opposite has happened. The district attorney, who campaigned on a promise to prosecute Donald Trump, brought these charges precisely because of who the defendant was rather than because of any specified criminal conduct,' she said in a statement.
'The political underpinnings of this case further blur the lines between the judicial system and the electoral system, and this verdict likely will be the subject of a protracted appeals process,' she warned. Collins said she would not endorse Trump even after if he is the GOP nominee. The rest of the Senate GOP who voted to convict were largely quiet. Sen. Mitt Romney , R-Utah, declined to comment. He's previously said it is 'embarrassing' for lawmakers to show up in front of the courthouse to defend Trump, but that President Biden should have pardoned his political opponent.
'He should have fought like crazy to keep this prosecution from going forward,' Romney said, referring to Biden. 'It was a win-win for Donald Trump.' 'I do. ... You may disagree with this, but had I been President Biden, when the Justice Department brought on indictments, I would have immediately pardoned him. I'd have pardoned President Trump. Why? Well, because it makes me, President Biden, the big guy and the person I pardoned a little guy.'
But, he said of the string of lawmakers traveling to the Manhattan courthouse to appear with Trump: 'I think it’s a little demeaning to show up in front of a courthouse—and particularly one where we’re talking about an allegation of paying a porn star. It’s really very difficult to watch...There’s a level of dignity and decorum that you expect of people who are running for the highest station in the land and going out and prostrating themselves in front of the public to try and, apparently, curry favor with the person who’s our nominee is a little embarrassing.' Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, could not be reached for comment. Sens. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., Ben Sasse, R-Neb., and Richard Burr, R-N.C., have since retired.
Rep. Peter Meijer, R-Mich., who narrowly lost his 2022 primary to Trump-endorsed John Gibbs who then lost to a Democrat , expressed disappointment in the ruling on X. He retweeted a series of warnings: 'This is wrong, it's dangerous, & it's inevitably going to take us to ever-darker places where those of us who believe in clear, written law applied impartially are ever more isolated.' 'Gonna be wild when Trump appeals a conviction based upon questionable legal theories all to the way to the Supreme Court and you suddenly realize why the Left has been methodically laying so much groundwork in advance trying to tar SCOTUS as corrupt,' read another retweet.
Former Rep. Justin Amash, the lone Republican to vote to impeach Trump in 2019 over his phone call with Ukraine , wrote on X: 'Set aside the politics. Today’s verdict is an affront to the Rule of Law and a perversion of justice. Bragg weaponized the legal system to indict Trump on charges that never would have been brought against anyone else. This selective and abusive prosecution will further undermine confidence in our Constitution and divide America. It must not stand.' Amash did not run for reelection in 2020 but launched a brief run for Senate this year that he's now suspended. Former Reps. Adam Kinzinger, Ill., who led the January 6th committee, praised the ruling in multiple posts on X. 'Justice is fair and equal. Don't break the law,' he said.
The jury of seven men and five women made their decision as the former President faced 34 counts of falsifying business records. His sentencing date is set for July 11. It comes after five weeks of dramatic evidence and 22 witnesses being quizzed on the stand. The case is the first time a former U.S. President has faced a criminal trial. The Trump team has vowed to appeal the conviction. He will now face the Appellate Division in Manhattan, and possibly the Court of Appeals, and will remain free on bail while he appeals.
The charges Trump faced each carried a maximum potential sentence of up to four years in prison. Jurors had the option of convicting Trump of all counts, acquitting him of all counts, or delivering a mixed verdict in which he was found guilty of some charges and not others . Falsifying business records would typically be a lower-level misdemeanor, but his charges have been raised to felony level because of a second crime : attempting to influence the 2016 election. The judge could consider the unprecedented nature of the case and choose not to put a former president and current candidate behind bars.
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