Former President Donald Trump was found guilty on Thursday on all charges of falsifying business records and will now await his sentencing on July 11 to learn his fate. Trump is now the first former president to be convicted of a felony. The sentence concerns hush money paid to an adult film star during his 2016 presidential campaign. Political leaders on both sides of the aisle in Alabama said they expected Trump to be found guilty. One side felt the trial was politically motivated from the beginning, while the other thought Trump was only being held accountable for his own actions. Alabama Republican Party Chairman John Wall said he felt the facts of the case were known years ago and should have been tried then. “If there were truly legal concerns, these charges should have been brought 2 years ago,” he said. “They weren’t brought 7 years ago. They weren’t brought 6 years ago. These charges were brought only after Donald Trump announced he was seeking reelection and began to beat Joe Biden in the polls.” Shortly after he was found guilty, Trump tweeted that his civil rights had been violated. Former U.S. Sen. Doug Jones said he expected Trump to use that excuse. “If you look back, the first thing every politician, every politician that’s ever been indicted, is they scream that it’s politics, that they’re being persecuted,” Jones said. “It’s about who’s responsible… This is not a witch hunt. The only person responsible for putting Donald Trump in this position is Donald Trump. He put himself in this position. He committed a crime and now he’s being held accountable.” If Trump is sentenced to prison in July, there’s no law preventing him from continuing to contest the presidency. Both Wall and Jones expect Trump to appeal his conviction.
Former President Donald Trump was found guilty on Thursday on all charges related to falsifying business records and will now await his sentencing on July 11 to learn his fate.
Trump is now the first former president to be convicted of a felony, convicted in connection with hush money paid to adult film stars during his 2016 presidential campaign.
Political leaders on both sides of the aisle in Alabama said they expected Trump to be convicted, with one side feeling from the start that the trial was politically motivated and the other believing Trump was only being held accountable for his own actions.
Alabama Republican Party Chairman John Wall believes the facts of the case have been known for years and should have gone to trial then.
“If there were real legal concerns, these charges should have been filed two years ago,” he said. “They weren’t filed seven years ago. They weren’t filed six years ago. They were filed only after Donald Trump announced his candidacy for reelection and began to beat Joe Biden in the polls.”
Shortly after the conviction, Trump tweeted that his civil rights had been violated, and former U.S. Sen. Doug Jones said he expected Trump to use that excuse.
“When you look back, every politician, every politician that’s ever been indicted, the first thing they say is that this is about politics, that they’re being persecuted,” he said. “Who’s to blame? … This is not a witch hunt. The only person who put Donald Trump in this position is Donald Trump. He put himself in this position. He committed a crime and now he’s being held accountable.”
If Trump is sentenced to prison in July, there is no law that would prevent him from continuing his bid for the White House, and both Wahl and Jones expect he will appeal his conviction.
