It was proof that “no American is above the law” or a “miscarriage of justice,” depending on who you ask.
May 30, 2024 9:32 pm EDT | Updated May 30, 2024 at 9:34 pmEDT
NEW Jersey – It was proof that “no American is above the law” or a “miscarriage of justice,” depending on who you ask. But either way, the conviction of former President Donald Trump was a milestone that will echo in American history. And there is no shortage of opinions on the matter in New Jersey.
A Manhattan jury convicted Trump on all 34 felony counts in his hush money criminal trial Thursday. At the center of the charges are refunds paid to former Trump attorney Michael Cohen for a $130,000 payment to porn actress Stormy Daniels in exchange for not going public with her claim about a sexual encounter with Trump in 2006. Prosecutors They say the refunds were falsely recorded as “legal expenses” to conceal the true nature of the transactions.
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The case is the first of four Trump indictments to go to trial. This makes him the first president in US history to be criminally convicted. See related: Trump found guilty by jury on all 34 counts in Hush Money trial
Trump called the process a “disgrace” and promised that the legal battle is “far from over,” adding that “the true verdict will be given by the people on November 5” as he continues to ramp up his re-election campaign.
But some members of Congress from New Jersey, including Trump’s frequent Democratic rival, U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, said the former president had his day in court … and lost.
“Today, our legal system has reaffirmed that no one is above the law, not even a former president,” Booker said after Thursday’s historic verdict.
“The fact is that former President Trump was afforded his due process rights and was able to mount a full defense in a court of law, as every criminal defendant should,” Booker continued. “The 34 guilty verdicts in the (Trump) case mean that a jury of his peers, after impartially reviewing the evidence presented and having sworn to faithfully perform their duties, unanimously determined beyond a reasonable doubt – 34 separate times – that the former president broke the law.”
U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew (NJ-2), a Republican who is chairing Trump’s re-election campaign in New Jersey, had a different take.
“Make no mistake about it, this will go down in history as one of the greatest miscarriages of justice in American history,” Van Drew wrote. “This is a sad day for the American people, regardless of whether they are Republicans, Democrats or independents.”
“This administration has weaponized our government on an unimaginable scale and if they can do this (to former President Trump), they can do it to any of us in the future,” the congressman added.
Another Trump supporter, the New Jersey Republican Party, held a fundraising call on behalf of the former president following Thursday’s verdict.
“It is a sad day for our country, but we must keep fighting,” the NJGOP wrote.
This sentiment – that it was a “sad day” for the nation – was also felt by U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11). But according to the Democratic congresswoman, it is also proof that the “rule of law” is worth fighting for.
“No American is above the law, not even a former president,” Sherrill said. “Trump has shown that his priority is to serve only himself, both financially and otherwise. “The American people deserve to know the full extent of Trump’s criminal plans and activities.”
“While today is a sad day in our nation’s history, as Donald Trump becomes the first president convicted of a crime, it is also a critical day for the rule of law,” said Sherrill, a former federal prosecutor.
“The former president must be held accountable for all his illegal actions and it is essential that we protect the judicial process and our democratic institutions,” he added.
This is not the first time Sherrill has criticized the former president this year. Ahead of Trump’s campaign trip to Wildwood on May 11, the congresswoman criticized him for his record of failures in the Garden State during a press call with Biden-Harris 2024 communications director Michael Tyler.
“I suspect that when Trump holds that rally in Wildwood, you will see a lot of people coming from outside our state, because here within our state, we know that Trump filed for bankruptcy five times… that he really undermined the economic viability of Atlantic City. . who didn’t pay workers, didn’t pay contractors, caused small businesses to go out of business because of their broken promises,” Sherrill said.
“We knew how important, for example, the Gateway Tunnel was going to be for jobs here in New Jersey,” Sherrill continued. “And yet we saw time and time again Trump undermine it, delivering weeks of fake infrastructure on a weekly basis, accomplishing nothing.”
In New Jersey, where registered Democratic voters significantly outnumber their Republican peers, some residents took a victory lap Thursday.
“I went and voted early today for the upcoming New Jersey Democratic primary,” one social media user posted on It has been a great day”.
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