- author, Rachel Lucker
- role, BBC News, Washington
-
US President Joe Biden said it was “reckless” for his predecessor Donald Trump to say his trial was rigged, the day after his historic conviction.
In his first public remarks regarding President Trump’s conviction on 34 counts of falsifying business records, Biden defended the US justice system.
Biden said the results “reaffirmed the American principle that no one is above the law.”
President Trump held a fiery news conference at Trump Tower in Manhattan on Friday, calling the judge “rigged,” the trial a “sham” and Democrats “thugs.”
Biden’s comments Friday afternoon came at the start of a White House news conference discussing the situation in the Middle East and Israel’s new proposal for Gaza.
Biden said his Republican opponent in November’s presidential election was given “every opportunity” to defend himself and make his case to the jury of 12 Americans and had no right to complain that the jury process was not fair.
“It’s reckless. It’s dangerous. It’s irresponsible to say there was fraud just because you don’t like the verdict,” he said, adding that he would welcome Trump appealing the decision.
Biden, who has rarely spoken publicly about Trump’s legal troubles, said the justice system is “a cornerstone of America.”
“The justice system must be respected and we must never tolerate those who seek to destroy it. That’s it. That’s America, that’s who we are,” he said.
Trump spoke briefly outside the courtroom on Thursday, saying he had been treated unfairly and that he should have been found “not guilty” in the case.
He blasted Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who took the matter to court.
“This is a disgrace. It was a rigged trial,” he said.
Trump did not answer questions from reporters at a press conference on Friday where he confirmed his team would appeal the convictions and reiterated his frustration.
He reiterated that the trial was “rigged” and claimed the New York case was a politically motivated “witch hunt.”
He also said one of the witnesses called by his defense team was “literally crucified,” and told supporters, “If they can do this to me, they can do it to anyone.”
Both Biden and Trump are seeking to boost campaign donations following Thursday’s ruling.
Biden used X (formerly Twitter) on Friday to post a fundraising link to ActBlue, a Democratic fundraising tool.
“Donald Trump threatens our democracy. First he called into question our electoral system. Then he called into question our judicial system. Now you can stop him,” he posted.
The Trump campaign announced it raised more than $34.8 million in the six hours after the conviction, roughly half of what it raised in the entire month of April.
Most of the funding came from small donors, with 30% of the money coming through the Republican fundraising platform WinRed.
Trump’s Truth Social account posted a fundraising request within minutes of the conviction.
“I am a political prisoner,” one post read.
His campaign also sent out emails soliciting donations.
Following Thursday afternoon’s guilty verdict, Trump’s digital fundraising system saw a record number of supporters turn out, according to Brian Hughes, a senior adviser to the Trump campaign.
Increased traffic volume caused intermittent delays, he added.
