Former Vice President Mike Pence has condemned the conviction of Donald Trump in his New York hush money trial, labeling it a “disservice to the nation.”
On Thursday, a jury found the former president guilty on all 34 criminal counts for falsifying business documents related to hush money payments during the 2016 election. District Attorney Alvin Bragg accused Trump of orchestrating payments to Stormy Daniels through his former attorney Michael Cohen to conceal their alleged affair.
Pence, who has expressed criticism of Trump since the launch of his 2024 presidential campaign, decried the New York jury’s decision, asserting that it sends a “terrible message” to the country.
“The conviction of former President Trump on politically motivated charges is an outrage and disservice to the nation,” Pence conveyed in a statement to Fox News Digital.
In the aftermath of the conviction, Trump directed his ire at Judge Juan Merchan and denounced the trial as “rigged,” pledging to appeal the decision.
“No one is above the law, but our courts must not become a tool to be used against political opponents,” Pence remarked. “To millions of Americans, this was nothing more than a political prosecution driven by a Manhattan DA who ran for office on a pledge to indict the former president, and this conviction undermines confidence in our system of justice.”
Pence joins a growing cohort of Republicans who are rallying behind Trump following the conviction, notwithstanding their previous criticisms of the Republican nominee.
“This conviction also sends a terrible message to the wider world about the American justice system and only further divides us at a time when the American people are grappling with the failed policies of the Biden administration domestically and internationally,” Pence continued.
He concluded, “Having been convicted in a court of law, the former president has every right to appeal this conviction, and I trust it will be overturned on appeal in a manner that will restore public confidence in our system of justice and ensure equal treatment under the law.”
