Evening summary
It was a day of ongoing reactions to yesterday’s historic conviction of former president Donald Trump on 34 felony counts. Here are some of today’s key takeaways, and don’t forget: there are still 158 days remaining before the 2024 presidential election.
In a rambling speech that made plenty of work for fact-checkers, Donald Trump blamed his criminal conviction on the political machinations of Joe Biden and his other Democratic opponents and vowed to appeal the verdict.
President Joe Biden announced a surprise afternoon speech about a completely unrelated topic: the Middle East. In his remarks, Biden urged Hamas to accept a new peace deal he said Israel has put on the table, and said: “It’s time for this war to be over.”
Biden also personally criticized Trump’s attacks on the legal system, warning that it was “reckless”, “dangerous” and “irresponsible” for people to say that the trial had been rigged “just because they don’t like the verdict”.
The Trump campaign announced a record-setting haul from donors following his conviction. An early Reuters poll found that a large majority of Republican voters continued to support Trump after his criminal conviction, with only 10% of Republican registered voters saying they were less likely to vote for Trump as a result of the verdict, though Reuters noted that even a small Republican shift away from Trump could be significant in a close race.
On social media and pro-Trump websites, some Trump supporters made threats of violence, and others posted photographs of the upside-down American flag that has been adopted as a pro-Trump protest symbol. Particularly notable, and concerning, were the threats against Judge Juan Merchan, who presided over Trump’s hush-money trial.
Updated
Michelle Obama’s mother, Marian Robinson, has died at age 86
The former first lady Michelle Obama has shared a tribute to her mother, which includes details of the time she spent living in the White House, as an informal first grandmother to the Obama children.
My mom Marian Robinson was my rock, always there for whatever I needed. She was the same steady backstop for our entire family, and we are heartbroken to share she passed away today. We wanted to offer some reflections on her remarkable life: https://t.co/F7T6q625PC
— Michelle Obama (@MichelleObama) May 31, 2024
Among the details in the Obama family’s tribute to her:
The trappings and glamour of the White House were never a great fit for Marian Robinson. ‘Just show me how to work the washing machine and I’m good,’ she’d say. Rather than hobnobbing with Oscar winners or Nobel laureates, she preferred spending her time upstairs with a TV tray, in the room outside her bedroom with big windows that looked out at the Washington Monument. The only guest she made a point of asking to meet was the Pope. Over those eight years, she made great friends with the ushers and butlers, the folks who make the White House a home. She’d often sneak outside the gates to buy greeting cards at CVS, and sometimes another customer might recognize her. ‘You look like Michelle’s mother,’ they’d say. She’d smile and reply, ‘Oh, I get that a lot.’
Updated
Broadcasters group rescinds award after De Niro’s stark criticism of Trump
Film actor Robert De Niro was scheduled to accept a leadership award from the National Association of Broadcasters, but the group has rescinded the award after the celebrity spoke out against Donald Trump outside his criminal trial in New York this week, the Hill and the Huffington Post report.
The National Association of Broadcasters did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Actor Robert De Niro and two Jan. 6 police officers showed up Tuesday on behalf of the Biden campaign outside the courthouse where former President Trump’s hush money trial is taking place.
— The Hill (@thehill) May 28, 2024
In its most direct attempt to wade into Trump’s legal troubles, President Biden’s… pic.twitter.com/Ja0gSPK0Wf
A spokesperson for the group told The Hill on Thursday that their event was “proudly bipartisan” and said: “While we strongly support the right of every American to exercise free speech and participate in civic engagement, it is clear that Mr. De Niro’s recent high-profile activities will create a distraction from the philanthropic work that we were hoping to recognize. To maintain the focus on service of the award winners, Mr. De Niro will no longer be attending the event.”
In a statement to the Hill, De Niro did not protest the decision, and said he continued to appreciate the group.
“I support the work of the NAB Leadership Foundation and would like to express my appreciation and gratitude for what the Foundation has done and will continue to do for the good of us all, and I wish them well for their continued good work,” the Hill reported him as saying in the statement.
Updated
Will Trump’s criminal conviction renew efforts to remove his public tributes?
On Thursday, a Los Angeles-based photographer posted an image of the star honoring Trump on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
#trump #guilty #Trumpguilty pic.twitter.com/f06ueWlpIp
— Plastic Jesus 📷 👩🎨 🇺🇸🇬🇧 (@PlasticJesus9) May 30, 2024
Efforts to permanently remove Trump’s star have gathered force in recent years, even as Los Angeles officials have waffled and disputed who has the power to remove any of the stars, many of which pay tribute to celebrities who were not very nice men.
The New York Times reports that the push to rename New York’s Donald J Trump state park may also gain new force after the former president’s conviction.
Updated
On pro-Trump websites, calls for violence, riots and revolution
Enraged by Donald Trump’s conviction on 34 felony counts by a New York jury, his supporters flooded pro-Trump websites with calls for riots, revolution and violent retribution, Reuters reports, based on its review of three Trump-aligned websites: the former president’s own Truth Social platform, Patriots.Win and the Gateway Pundit.
Some called for attacks on jurors, the execution of the judge, Justice Juan Merchan, or outright civil war and armed insurrection.
“Someone in NY with nothing to lose needs to take care of Merchan,” wrote one commentator on Patriots.Win. “Hopefully he gets met with illegals with a machete,” the post said in reference to undocumented immigrants.
On Gateway Pundit, one poster suggested shooting liberals after the verdict. “Time to start capping some leftys,” said the post. “This cannot be fixed by voting.”
As Reuters notes, these kinds of threats are not new, or limited to this single case:
As he campaigns for a second White House term, Trump has baselessly cast the judges and prosecutors in his trials as corrupt tools of the Biden administration, intent on sabotaging his White House bid. His loyalists have responded with a campaign of threats and intimidation targeting judges and court officials.
My colleague Gloria Oladipo had more earlier today on threats against Judge Merchan in particular:
Updated
Wall Street woes: how much value did Trump’s company lose post-conviction?
Donald Trump’s paper fortune dropped by hundreds of millions of dollars on Friday as shares in his media firm came under pressure in the wake of his conviction in his New York hush-money trial.
Trump Media & Technology Group’s stock finished the day down 5.3% on Wall Street, denting the value of the former president’s vast stake in the business.
By the time markets closed for the day, Trump’s stake stood at about $5.6bn. The previous day, it had been closer to $6bn.
When New York’s Nasdaq stock exchange closed on Thursday, about an hour before Trump was found guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records in a criminal hush-money scheme, his stake in Trump Media was worth more than $5.9bn. At one point on Friday, as the company’s stock fell, his stake was worth less than $5.5bn. His fortune recovered some ground near the end of the day.
Read the full story:
Updated
It’s a historic criminal conviction. And you’re getting fundraising emails about it.
In an election year, it seems there is no event, no matter how small or how monumental, that cannot be stuffed into the maw of campaign email strategy and emerge as a plea for cash.
The New York Times reports that the California governor Gavin Newsom sent out fundraising appeals to Biden supporters today in response to the Trump campaign’s announcement that it had raised $34.8m in small-dollar donations following the former president’s conviction on felony business fraud charges.
“We cannot risk falling behind,” Newsom wrote.
Updated
Fact-checking Trump’s defiant post-conviction rant
Catching up on today’s Trump news? I’ll be sharing key takeaways from the day.
Donald Trump delivered a rambling, incoherent speech laden with falsehoods and conspiracy theories from the atrium of Trump Tower, a day after he was convicted of all 34 counts of falsifying business records in his hush-money criminal trial, my colleague Léonie Chao-Fong reports.
Here are some key fact-checks of his claims:
Updated
Video: ‘It’s time for this war to end’ Biden says as he presents new Gaza plan
Joe Biden has urged Hamas to accept a new peace deal he said Israel has put on the table, offering a permanent ceasefire and Israeli withdrawal from Gaza in return for the release of all hostages and the long-term reconstruction of the shattered coastal strip.
“It’s time for this war to end … for the day after to begin,” Biden said, outlining the framework of a three-phase agreement, which he said had been put on the table for the Israeli government.
Read the full story:
Updated
Trump supporters post photos of upside down American flags in protest of conviction
The Associated Press and Reuters have reports on the upside-down flags popping up outside homes and businesses, and on social media, as Trump supporters protest his conviction. The Associated Press reports:
After Donald Trump’s historic guilty verdict, a steady flow of images showing upside-down American flags has appeared on social media as his supporters and right-wing commentators protest his felony conviction.
At least one such flag was spotted Friday outside Trump Tower in New York City as the Republican former president spoke about the trial. Republican National Committee co-chair Lara Trump, the former president’s daughter-in-law, and Donald Trump Jr., his eldest son, have been sharing images of inverted flags online.
The upside-down American flag gained wide attention recently after revelations that it was flown outside the Alexandria, Virginia, home of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol by Trump supporters seeking to halt the certification of the 2020 presidential election results. A flag like that was carried by the rioters while they echoed Trump’s false claims of election fraud.
Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican representative, and country music singer Jason Aldean were among the prominent Americans to display the inverted flag, Reuters reported, as did the Miami chapter of the Proud Boys, a far-right militant group.
Updated
DC disciplinary board recommends Rudy Giuliani lose his law license for challenging election results
This is Lois Beckett, picking up our live politics coverage from Los Angeles.
While Trump continues to rail against his criminal conviction on 34 counts of falsifying business records, his longtime ally Rudy Giuliani is facing professional consequences: the potential loss of his law license, Reuters reports:
Rudy Giuliani should be stripped of his law license for his work on a failed lawsuit challenging former President Donald Trump’s 2020 U.S. election loss in Pennsylvania, a Washington, D.C. disciplinary board recommended on Friday.
Giuliani, formerly Trump’s personal lawyer and before that a top Manhattan federal prosecutor and mayor of New York City, tried “to disenfranchise hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvania voters without the slightest factual basis for doing so,” the D.C. Board on Professional Responsibility said in its 63-page report.
Updated
In an interview earlier in the day, the Republican speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, called on the supreme court to intervene in Donald Trump’s business fraud conviction.
“I do believe the supreme court should step in,” Johnson, an ally of Trump, said in an interview with Fox News. “Obviously, this is totally unprecedented, and it’s dangerous to our system.”
The comment comes at a sensitive time for the court, which is currently weighing whether Trump is immune from prosecution for his attempts to overturn the 2020 election. In oral arguments last month, some conservative justices appeared open to at least partially accepting his argument, which could have the effect of delaying his trial until after the election.
Meanwhile, Democrats are calling on conservative justice Samuel Alito to recuse himself from the case, after rightwing flags were discovered to have flown at two of his houses. Alito has declined their demands. Here’s more about that:
Updated
The judge who presided over Donald Trump’s criminal business fraud trial over hush-money payments is the target of a wave of rightwing misinformation in the wake of his conviction on business fraud charges, the Guardian’s Gloria Oladipo reports:
Juan Merchan, the judge who oversaw the New York hush-money trial of Donald Trump, is facing fresh threats to his safety after false reports about jury instructions have circulated online.
Several rightwing pundits, including a Fox News anchor, have incorrectly reported that Merchan told jurors they did not need to be unanimous in finding Trump guilty in order to convict him, NBC News reported.
“Judge Merchan just told the jury that they do not need unanimity to convict,” Fox News anchor John Roberts posted to X on Wednesday. “4 could agree on one crime, 4 on a different one, and the other 4 on another. He said he would treat 4-4-4 as a unanimous verdict.”
Roberts’s post has been viewed almost 6m times.
Misinformation on Merchan’s instructions have drawn threats of violence, especially after Trump was found guilty of all 34 counts of falsifying business records in the hush-money trial on Thursday.
On Gab, a social media site popular among far-right users, one person said it was “time to find out where that judge lives and protest as the left calls it”, NBC reported.
Others in pro-Trump forums accused Merchan of treason, and suggested that he should be hanged for his participation in the trial, an echo of rioters at the January 6 attack on the US Capitol by extremist Trump supporters who called for Mike Pence, then the vice-president, to be hanged for refusing to block the certification of Joe Biden’s election victory.
Updated
Earlier in the day, Donald Trump expressed regret at not testifying in his defense in his business fraud trial.
The former president has in the past gone so far as to falsely claim that he was prevented from testifying. In an interview with CNN, Todd Blanche, one of Trump’s attorneys, elaborated on why he did not end up appearing as a witness in his defense:
CNN’s Kaitlan Collins: “No regrets on [Trump] not taking the stand?”
— The Recount (@therecount) May 31, 2024
Trump attorney Todd Blanche: “I don’t know if I have any regrets about anything yet. … I don’t think ... there was a conviction because he did not take the stand.” pic.twitter.com/zPCCnT4UaN
Trump conviction dents independent, GOP support - poll
A just-released Reuters/Ipsos poll indicates Donald Trump’s business fraud conviction may cost him among independent voters, as well as Republicans.
The survey conducted following Trump’s guilty verdict on Thursday finds 10% of registered Republican voters are less likely to voter for him, alongside a quarter of registered independent voters.
The findings were significant for a few reasons. Independent voters may decide the outcome in swing states Joe Biden carried in 2020, but where polls show his support has dropped in the years since. And even though Trump easily won the votes necessary to become the GOP’s presumptive nominee, some people continue to cast ballots for Nikki Haley, who bowed out of the race for the Republican nomination months ago. That raises the possibility that the former president is unpalatable to a potentially significant number of Republicans – a group whose ranks may have just grown with his conviction.
Updated
Beyond using it to tar Donald Trump as unfit for office, Democrats are deploying his felony conviction on business fraud charges against Republicans seeking election to Congress.
The Guardian’s US politics live blog just received nine emails from the House Majority Pac, which works to elect Democrats to Congress’s lower house. The subject line of each included the name of a vulnerable Republican congressman, and the (made up, rhetorical) quote, “I support crime”.
The emails generally go on to accuse the lawmakers of being “pro-crime” for supporting GOP policies. Here’s what House Majority Pac press secretary Alisha Heng had to say about Jen Kiggans, a Republican representing a hotly contested district in Virginia:
Jen ‘pro-crime’ Kiggans fell in line with convicted criminal Donald Trump long ago and has now gone a step further by flagrantly defaming America’s entire criminal justice system. Trump was convicted by a jury of his peers, and voters will not forget how Jen Kiggans denigrated everyday Americans to stand by a felon in November.
Rightwing Republicans vow to defy Democrats in Senate after Trump conviction
Eight Republican senators say they will refuse to cooperate with the chamber’s Democratic leadership following Donald Trump’s conviction.
The group includes lawmakers from deep-red states, such as Mike Lee of Utah, Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee and Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, as well as those representing places where Democrats can occasionally put up a fight, such as JD Vance of Ohio and Florida’s Rick Scott and Marco Rubio. It is unclear what practical impact their declaration will have in a chamber where Democrats have a 51-seat majority and are sometimes able to move legislation with the assistance of more moderate Republicans.
Here’s more from Lee on the group’s pledge:
Strongly worded statements are not enough.
— Mike Lee (@SenMikeLee) May 31, 2024
Those who turned our judicial system into a political cudgel must be held accountable.
We are no longer cooperating with any Democrat legislative priorities or nominations, and we invite all concerned Senators to join our stand. pic.twitter.com/H0CzIjXgwC
Biden says 'it's time for this war to end, for the day after to begin'
Israel has made its proposal, Biden said, and the US “will help ensure that Israel lives up to their obligation”.
Biden described it as a “truly decisive moment”, and said the deal is an opportunity for Hamas to prove whether it really means it when it said it wanted a ceasefire.
“People all over the world have called for a ceasefire,” the president said.
Now it’s time to raise your voices and demand Hamas come to the table, agree to this deal, and end this war that they began.
Biden called on “everyone who wants peace now” to “raise their voices and let their leaders know they should take this deal”.
He concluded his speech by saying:
It’s time to begin this new stage, for the hostages come home, for Israel to be secure, for the suffering to stop. It’s time for this war to end, for the day after to begin.
Updated
Joe Biden, after presenting Israel’s new proposal, said “that is the offer that’s now on the table”.
Biden said he knew that there are those in Israel – including in the Israeli coalition government – who will not agree with this plan and who are calling for the war to continue indefinitely.
He said those people “made it clear they want to occupy Gaza … and the hostages are not a priority to them.” Biden said:
I’ve urged the leadership in Israel to stand behind this deal despite whatever pressure comes. To the people of Israel, let me say this – as someone who’s had a lifelong commitment to Israel, as the only American president has ever gone to Israel in a time of war, as someone who just sent the US forces to directly defend Israel when it was attacked by Iran, I ask you to take a step back. Think what will happen if this moment is lost. You can’t lose this moment.
Biden outlines new Israeli proposal for ceasefire in Gaza
Joe Biden, in a speech from the White House, moved on to the situation in the Middle East.
He said his negotiators and the foreign policy intelligence community have been “relentlessly” focused for the past several months not just on a ceasefire in Gaza – which he said would “inevitably be fragile and temporary” – but on a “durable end of the war”.
Biden said Israel has offered a “comprehensive new proposal” that has been transmitted by Qatar to Hamas, and that the deal is “an opportunity to prove” whether Hamas really mean it when they say they want a ceasefire.
The new proposal has three phases, Biden said.
The first phase would last for six weeks and include “a full and complete ceasefire, withdrawal of Israeli forces from all populated areas of Gaza”, the release of a number of hostages (including women, elderly, wounded) and the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, as well as the release of American hostages.
Under the first phase, Biden said, civilians would be able to return to their homes and neighbourhoods in all areas of Gaza, including in the north. Some 600 trucks carrying humanitarian aid would be delivered to Gaza every single day, and aid would be safely and effectively distributed to those who need it.
During that first phase, Israel and Hamas would negotiate the arrangements to get to phase two – “a permanent end to hostilities”, Biden said.
Phase two would be in exchange for the release of all remaining living hostages, including male soldiers, and that Israeli forces withdraw from Gaza, Biden said.
As long as Hamas lives up to its commitments, a temporary ceasefire will become – in the words of the Israeli proposal – the cessation of hostilities permanently.
Phase three would involve a major reconstruction plan for Gaza, and any final remains of hostages who have been killed would be returned to teir families.
Biden says it's 'dangerous' to say that trial was rigged 'just because they don’t like the verdict'
Biden warned it was “reckless”, “dangerous” and “irresponsible” to say that the trial was rigged “just because they don’t like the verdict”.
The US justice system has endured for nearly 250 years and is “literally the cornerstone of America” and should be respected, Biden said.
We should never allow anyone to tear it down.
Updated
Biden says Trump verdict shows 'no one is above the law'
Joe Biden is delivering a speech from the White House, where he began by saying that he wanted to say a few words “about what happened yesterday in New York City”.
“The American principle that no one is above the law was reaffirmed,” the president said.
Donald Trump was given every opportunity to defend himself.
Biden said the state was a state case and not a federal one, that was heard by a jury of 12 Americans “like you” who were chosen the same way every jury is chosen. Biden said:
Trump will be given the opportunity – as he should – to appeal that decision, just like everyone else has that opportunity. That’s how the American system of justice works.
Updated
Chuck Schumer, the Democratic Senate majority leader, has released a statement calling for Donald Trump’s supporters and critics alike “to let the process move forward according to the law”.
The statement reads:
The undeniable fact is Donald Trump went through the same legal process that all Americans go through, he was tried according to the facts and the law, and he was found guilty by a jury of his peers. He’s now a convicted felon.
As Donald Trump considers his next steps within the legal system, there should continue to be no outside political influence, intimidation, or interference. I encourage Mr Trump’s supporters and critics alike to let the process move forward according to the law.
Updated
House GOP calls on Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg to testify
The House judiciary committee’s weaponization of government subcommittee said it will “demand” that the Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg, and prosecutor Matthew Colangelo testify before the committee.
The committee said the hearing “will examine the unprecedented political prosecution” of Trump.
#BREAKING: @Jim_Jordan will demand Alvin Bragg and Matthew Colangelo to appear for hearing on June 13, 2024 to testify about the unprecedented political prosecution of President Trump.
— Weaponization Committee (@Weaponization) May 31, 2024
Trump ally Jim Jordan, who chairs the committee, posted to social media the letters inviting Bragg and Colangelo to testify at the hearing on 13 June.
— Rep. Jim Jordan (@Jim_Jordan) May 31, 2024
Updated
The day so far
In a rambling speech in New York, Donald Trump blamed Joe Biden and the Democrats for his felony conviction yesterday on business fraud charges, vowed to appeal and said: “I’m willing to do whatever I have to do to save our country and to save our constitution.” But, the fact is, Trump is the first ever former American president convicted of a crime, and the jury’s decision has the potential to upend the 2024 election, and potentially give Biden – who has been unpopular for years and trails his predecessor in swing state polling – an edge. We will not know for sure how much of a difference the conviction will make until new polling is conducted, but one thing that has become clear today is that Republican leaders aren’t changing their minds about Trump. Even the Senate minority leader, Mitch McConnell, whose relationship with the former president collapsed after the January 6 Capitol attack, said he expects his conviction to be overturned on appeal. We’ll see about that.
Here’s what else has happened today so far:
Biden’s campaign said Trump’s press conference showed he was “confused, desperate and defeated”.
The president has not personally said a word about Trump’s conviction, but announced a surprise afternoon speech about a completely unrelated topic: the Middle East.
The Trump campaign announced a record-setting haul from donors following his conviction.
Updated
Biden campaign calls Trump 'confused, desperate and defeated' after post-conviction speech
Joe Biden’s re-election campaign has responded to Donald Trump’s speech in New York, calling him “unhinged” and saying he is worried only about himself.
Here’s what communications director Michael Tyler had to say:
America just witnessed a confused, desperate and defeated Donald Trump ramble about his own personal grievances and lie about the American justice system, leaving anyone watching with one obvious conclusion: this man cannot be president of the United States. Unhinged by his 2020 election loss and spiraling from his criminal convictions, Trump is consumed by his own thirst for revenge and retribution. He thinks this election is about him. But it’s not. It’s about the American people: lowering their costs, protecting their freedoms, defending their democracy.
That’s what Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are fighting for. Donald Trump is sowing chaos, attacking the rule of law and fighting for the only thing in the world he gives a damn about: Donald Trump.
Updated
While Joe Biden has not said a word about Donald Trump’s conviction, his surrogates have been giving a preview of how the president’s re-election campaign will deploy the verdict to convince voters to turn against his predecessor.
In an interview with MSNBC, Biden’s campaign co-chair Mitch Landrieu included the felony conviction in a laundry list of reasons not to vote for Trump:
Biden-Harris Campaign Co-Chair Mitch Landrieu: President Biden always talks about how fragile democracy can be. You have to go to the polls and vote. That's how in a democracy you stop autocracies from happening. So go to https://t.co/GPLVdi4tnJ, that's the only way to keep Trump… pic.twitter.com/G2tMoi3Omn
— Biden-Harris HQ (@BidenHQ) May 31, 2024
The fact is, no one really knows how Donald Trump’s felony conviction will affect the 2024 election, or his chances of winning.
We will probably get an idea as pollsters release surveys of public opinion in the days and weeks to come, and only know for sure after the 5 November election.
Plenty of people are nonetheless offering their guesses of how the conviction may be interpreted by voters, including Dan Pfeiffer, a former White House adviser to Barack Obama.
He predicts that the conviction will not be a game changer in the presidential race:
I am skeptical that we will see a big swing in the race in the immediate aftermath of the conviction. The verdict comes when most voters – especially the persuadable ones who will decide the election – are not yet tuned into the race.
Pollsters are notoriously bad at assessing hypothetical situations. And let’s be honest, for as serious as this case is, it’s not as relevant to voters as stealing classified secrets or committing fraud to overturn the election.
We also know that voters have short attention spans, and Trump is very good at distracting people from his problems by creating new ones.
But says the fact that the former president has been found guilty of a crime is potent ammunition for Joe Biden and his allies – if they use it correctly:
This is going to sound basic, but Democrats should refer to Trump as a convicted felon at every opportunity. Repetition is the key to a successful message and we want people to wrestle with the notion of hiring a convicted felon for the most important job in the country.
Most voters don’t like Trump. Many are pulling the lever for him with great reluctance. Trumps’ conviction COULD be the thing that prevents them from doing so.
Updated
Donald Trump claimed that a Daily Mail poll taken after his guilty verdict showed that he was “up by six points”.
The poll he was referring to was an online survey of 400 likely voters that measured his favorability ratings, and not voting intention.
Of those who said the 34 guilty counts had changed their view of Trump, 22% said they had a more favorable rating compared with 16% who said they viewed him more negatively.
In contrast, a YouGov poll shows that 27% of voters said the conviction made them less likely to vote for Trump, compared with 26% who said they were more likely to vote for him and 39% who said the verdict “makes no difference” in how they’ll vote.
Donald Trump claimed the crime that he was convicted for means that “I’m supposed to go to jail for 187 years”.
The former president was found guilty of falsifying business records in the first degree, a class E felony in New York. That is the least serious category, and punishable by up to four years in prison.
But as a first-time, nonviolent offender, it is unlikely that Trump will face a long sentence. Experts say he is unlikely to receive jail time at all.
Donald Trump claimed that prosecutors who charged him were not allowed to look into alleged federal campaign finance violations.
In fact, Manhattan prosecutors did not charge him with federal violations but instead listed the allegations as one of three “unlawful acts” that jurors were asked to consider.
Prosecutors said the other crime Trump was charged for was a violation of a state election law barring conspiracies to promote or prevent an election by unlawful means.
Donald Trump claimed that he wanted to testify “but the theory is that you don’t testify because … they’ll get you on something you said slightly wrong, and then they sue you for perjury”.
Trump has previously railed about being silenced and falsely claimed he was not allowed to testify at the trial, but ultimately elected of his own volition not to take the stand in his own defense.
Judge Juan Merchan earlier this month addressed Trump’s claims, saying: “I want to stress, Mr Trump, that you have an absolute right to testify at trial,” and adding that the gag order preventing Trump from verbally attacking witnesses did not affect his right to take the stand.
Trump: 'I'm willing to do whatever I have to do to save our country'
As his speech drew to a close, Trump cast himself as a fighter for the United States at large.
“I’m willing to do whatever I have to do to save our country and to save our constitution,” he said. “So we will continue the fight. We’re going to make America great again.”
He then went back to complaining about various things, chief among them migrants.
“Our kids can’t have a little league game anymore because you have tents and you have migrants living on the fields. That’s the least of it. People are taking over our luxury hotels, migrants and yet, our veterans, our great veterans, are living on the streets like dogs. They’re living on the streets, but migrants are living in luxury hotels and cities all over our country run by Democrats,” Trump said.
He closed with:
Remember, November 5 is the most important day in the history of our country. Thank you very much.
Updated
The former president is now taking something of a trip down memory lane, attacking members of the January 6 committee, as well as the two impeachment resolutions passed against him during his presidency.
“Number one, that was a total hoax. I had great support from the Republican party, though. Then you had impeachment hoax number two, and then they formed the committee … they formed the committee of thugs, the J6 committee of thugs,” Trump said.
He went on to deny the story, recounted before the committee by former Trump White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson, that he grabbed for the steering wheel of his car on January 6.
“I did not attack the Secret Service agent in the front of a car,” Trump said. “The fact is, it never happened. It was all made up, and that was proven to be made up.”
Updated
Donald Trump’s accusation that Joe Biden was behind the prosecution does not line up with the facts of the case.
“This is all done by Biden and his people”, the former president said at his ongoing speech at Trump Tower.
The case against Trump was brought by the elected Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg, who does not report to the federal government.
Biden does not have any authority over Bragg or his office, and there is no evidence that the Biden administration had anything to do with the case.
Trump then went back to attacking Joe Biden, accusing him of orchestrating his conviction in New York.
“It all comes out of the White House. Crooked Joe Biden, the worst president in the history of our country. He’s the worst president in the history of our country, the most incompetent, he’s the dumbest president we’ve ever had. He’s the dumbest president, most incompetent president, and he’s the most dishonest president we’ve ever had,” Trump said.
Trump says he'll appeal 'scam' conviction
After going on for quite a while about all the ways in which he believes he was wrongfully convicted on business fraud charges, Donald Trump said he would appeal the jury’s verdict.
“We’re going to be appealing this scam. We’re going to be appealing it on many different things,” Trump said.
Referring to judge Juan Merchan, Trump said, “He wouldn’t allow us to have witnesses, he wouldn’t allow us to talk, he wouldn’t allow us to do anything. The judge was a tyrant.”
Donald Trump claimed he is under a “nasty gag order, which nobody has ever been under”. He also said he has had to pay thousands of dollars in penalties, and was threatened with jail.
Under Juan Merchan’s order designed to protect trial participants from Trump’s abuse, the former president is barred from making, or directing others to make, public statements about witnesses concerning their roles in the investigation and at trial. It also covers prosecutors and members of the court staff or the district attorney’s staff.
However, Trump is allowed to say what he wants about Merchan and the district attorney, Alvin Bragg.
Updated
Trump appears to be talking now about the saga of Allen Weisselberg, the former chief financial officer of his business.
While Weisselberg did not testify in his business fraud trial, his name came up repeatedly during the trial as involved in the plan to pay hush money to keep a story of Trump’s affair out of the press. In his speech, Trump is not using Weisselberg’s name, but appears to be referring to him.
“We’re living in a fascist state,” Trump complained as he recounted the saga of Weisselberg, who went to jail on perjury charges. “It’s so unfair, but they destroyed his life.”
Here’s more about the former Trump Organization CFO, and his role in Trump’s prosecution:
Donald Trump claimed that the judge presiding over his hush-money case, Juan Merchan, and the court is in “total conjunction with the White House and the DoJ [department of justice]”.
There is no evidence for this claim.
Once again, Trump claimed that his trial was “rigged”.
“It was a rigged trial. We wanted a venue change, where we could have a fair trial. We didn’t get it. We wanted a judge change, we wanted a judge that wasn’t conflicted, and obviously he didn’t do that … nobody’s ever seen anything like it,” the former president said.
Trump says conviction is 'all done by Biden and his people'
Donald Trump then pivoted to attacking Joe Biden, and blaming him for his business fraud conviction.
“I’m the leading candidate. I’m leading Biden by a lot, and I’m leading the Republicans to the point where that’s over,” Trump said.
He recounted that he was under a gag order, which he said was the fault of Biden and the justice department – though the order was in fact imposed by the New York judge, Juan Merchan. Trump went on about how Biden was the cause of his problems:
Just so you understand, this is all done by Biden and his people, maybe his people, more importantly, I don’t know, if Biden knows too much about it, because I don’t know if he knows about anything, but he’s nevertheless the president, so we have to use his name, and this is done by Washington, and nobody’s ever seen anything like it.
Updated
'If they can do this to me, they can do this to anyone', Trump says following conviction
Donald Trump began his speech by describing his conviction as a harbinger of bad things to come, before pivoting to the well-worn topic of immigration.
“This is a case where, if they can do this to me, they can do this to anyone,” the former president said.
Then he changed the subject:
These are bad people. These are, in many cases, I believe, sick people. When you look at our country, what’s happening, where millions and millions of people are flowing in from all parts of the world, not just South America, from Africa, from Asia, from the Middle East, and they’re coming in from jails and prisons, and they’re coming in from mental institutions and insane asylums. They’re coming in from all over the world into our country, and we have a president and a group of fascists that don’t want to do anything about it.
Donald Trump is walking up to the podium now.
Trump to deliver remarks in New York following felony conviction
Donald Trump is expected to begin speaking in the lobby of Trump Tower in New York at 11am, a campaign official confirms.
There are no teleprompter panels set up next to the lectern, so this may be a particularly freewheeling speech from Trump.
Updated
Joe Biden just announced that he will speak this afternoon about … the middle east:
Later today, I’ll deliver remarks on the Middle East.
— President Biden (@POTUS) May 31, 2024
Tune in here.
The president has kept mum since a jury found Donald Trump guilty of business fraud charges yesterday, with White House spokesman Ian Sams saying, “We respect the rule of law, and have no additional comment.”
The speech was not previously on Biden’s schedule. It comes as the president faces sustained criticism for his support of Israel, while his administration pushes for a deal with Hamas that would lead to the release of hostages and a ceasefire in Gaza.
Updated
Dozens of reporters are gathered in the lobby of New York’s Trump tower ahead of his press conference at 11am.
Awaiting DT ahead of his 11am presser at Trump Tower following guilty verdict pic.twitter.com/OXqw6lsCj1
— M (@Myxyz1010) May 31, 2024
New York police officers are stationed outside the tower on Fifth Avenue, which is lined with metal barricades. A few minutes ago, someone drove a car adorned with Trump memorabilia down the street, blasting Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the USA”.
Another supporter wearing a Maga hat waved a yellow flag that read “Don’t tread on me.” On his shirt were the words, “Chinese Americans love Trump.”
Trump campaign announces record $34.8m raised after conviction
Donald Trump’s salvos of fundraising emails, text messages and advertisements appear to have paid off, as his campaign just announced a record $34.8m in small-dollar donations following his conviction on felony business fraud charges.
Here’s senior Trump campaign advisors Chris LaCivita and Susie Wiles on the mammoth haul:
From just minutes after the sham trial verdict was announced, our digital fundraising system was overwhelmed with support, and despite temporary delays online because of the amount of traffic, President Trump raised $34.8 million dollars from small dollar donors. Not only was the amount historic, but 29.7% of yesterday’s donor’s were brand new donors to the WinRed platform. President Trump and our campaign are immensely grateful from this outpouring of support from patriots across our country. President Trump is fighting to save our nation and November 5th is the day Americans will deliver the real verdict.
Now that a jury has found Donald Trump guilty of felony charges, the question becomes: how will that affect his chances of winning the 2024 election?
Polls have lately shown Trump leading Joe Biden in swing states, as the president struggles with persistently low approval ratings.
Politico got hold of a memo from Trump’s campaign advisers that generally downplays the impact of his conviction on his polling, but does admit that their polling shows his lead decreased by two percentage points, if he was convicted.
Whether or not that would be enough for Biden to close the gap in swing states that will determine the election remains to be seen. Here’s more on some of the latest polls of the presidential race:
Maryland's former Republican governor says public should 'respect the verdict'
Top Republicans have (once again) united behind Donald Trump after his felony conviction yesterday, with a handful of exceptions.
Larry Hogan, the former Maryland governor who is running for Senate representing the deep-blue state, said the public should “respect the verdict”:
Regardless of the result, I urge all Americans to respect the verdict and the legal process. At this dangerously divided moment in our history, all leaders—regardless of party—must not pour fuel on the fire with more toxic partisanship. We must reaffirm what has made this nation…
— Governor Larry Hogan (@GovLarryHogan) May 30, 2024
Hogan has previously denounced Trump, and, if he wins election, seems set to play the spoiler role once occupied by the departing Mitt Romney and other moderates.
Needless to say, the Trump team was not pleased with Hogan’s comments. Here’s senior campaign adviser Chris LaCivita:
You just ended your campaign https://t.co/LJDuQ4oj0A
— Chris LaCivita (@LaCivitaC) May 30, 2024
Adam Kinzinger, a former Republican congressman who chose to retire after breaking with the rest of the party over Trump and serving on the January 6 committee, also welcomed the verdict:
Exactly. Justice is fair and equal. Don’t break the law https://t.co/t4BdKRfDUh
— Adam Kinzinger (Slava Ukraini) 🇺🇸🇺🇦🇮🇱 (@AdamKinzinger) May 31, 2024
Updated
Robert F Kennedy says Democrats plan to 'beat president Trump in the courtroom rather than the ballot box'
In a post on X, independent presidential candidate Robert F Kennedy Jr accused Democrats of orchestrating Donald Trump’s business fraud conviction because they were afraid of losing to him in the November election:
The Democratic Party's strategy is to beat President Trump in the courtroom rather than the ballot box. This will backfire in November. Even worse, it is profoundly undemocratic.
— Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) May 30, 2024
America deserves a President who can win at the ballot box without compromising our government’s…
While Alvin Bragg, the Manhattan district attorney who led the prosecution, is indeed a Democrat, no evidence has emerged that he collaborated with the party, or Joe Biden’s re-election campaign.
Updated
Since his conviction yesterday afternoon, Donald Trump’s campaign has sent out a deluge of fundraising emails that stridently decry his conviction.
“BREAKING FROM TRUMP: JUSTICE IS DEAD IN AMERICA!” reads one that just landed in the inbox of the Guardian’s US politics live blog.
“I was just convicted in a RIGGED TRIAL meant to interfere in our elections. Their sick & twisted goal is simple: Pervert the justice system against me so much, that proud supporters like YOU will SPIT when you hear my name.”
It goes on to say that “Today is a DARK DAY in history, but your response right now will shine brighter than the 1,000 suns.”
Mitch McConnell defends Trump, says he expects conviction 'overturned on appeal'
The Senate’s top Republican, Mitch McConnell, defended Donald Trump last night after the former president was convicted on business fraud charges:
These charges never should have been brought in the first place. I expect the conviction to be overturned on appeal.
— Leader McConnell (@LeaderMcConnell) May 31, 2024
McConnell, who led the Senate when Republicans held the majority during Trump’s term, collaborated with Trump on passing legislation and confirming three conservative supreme court justices. The pair had a falling out after January 6, but McConnell earlier this year said her would vote for Trump:
Trump says, 'if this can happen to me, it can happen to anyone', defends bookkeeping
It is Donald Trump’s first full day as a convicted felon, and he has started the morning off with a post on Truth Social proclaiming his innocence of the business fraud charges he was found guilty of yesterday.
The former president was convicted for falsely recording the reimbursements he made to his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, as “legal expenses”. Cohen used the money to pay for the silence of Stormy Daniels, an adult film actor who said she had an affair with Trump.
Here’s what Trump had to say, on Truth:
My bookkeeper called a “Legal Expense,” on the “tiny” description line of the Ledger, a “Legal Expense,” openly paid to my lawyer, at that time a fully accredited one. I was not involved in that designation, but what else would you have called it? It was, in fact, a LEGAL EXPENSE. That is the so-called “CRIME.” On top of that, I wasn’t allowed by the judge to use, in any form, the standard RELIANCE ON COUNSEL DEFENSE (ADVICE OF COUNSEL!). My lawyer, at the time, did virtually everything on the NDA (NON-DISCLOSURE AGREEMENT), and I assumed that what he did was correct. I did nothing wrong, and frankly, there was nothing done wrong - NDA’s are standard, commonly used, and LEGAL. MAGA2024! WITCH HUNT! IF THIS CAN HAPPEN TO ME, IT CAN HAPPEN TO ANYONE!
Updated
Summary
A New York jury has convicted Donald Trump on all 34 counts of falsifying business records in a criminal hush-money scheme to influence the outcome of the 2016 election. Trump is now the first US president to be convicted of a crime.
Trump has reacted defiantly to the verdict, calling the trial “rigged” and a “disgrace”. His legal team has vowed to vigorously fight the conviction. “As soon as we can appeal we will,” said Todd Blanche, one of Trump’s attorneys.
Although Joe Biden himself has declined to comment on the verdict, his campaign sent out an email stating “no one is above the law”. “In New York today, we saw that no one is above the law. Donald Trump has always mistakenly believed he would never face consequences for breaking the law for his own personal gain,” wrote Michael Tyler, Biden’s communications director. “But today’s verdict does not change the fact that the American people face a simple reality. There is still only one way to keep Donald Trump out of the Oval Office: at the ballot box. Convicted felon or not, Trump will be the Republican nominee for president.” Ian Sams, spokesperson for the White House counsel’s office, said in a statement: “We respect the rule of law, and have no additional comment.”
Meanwhile, Trump’s campaign is already moving to fundraise off of the verdict, sending out an email to his supporters declaring him a “political prisoner”. Politico is reporting that the Trump campaign is telling down ballot Republicans to back off of fundraising for themselves off the former president’s convictions – because they believe the trial to be a fundraising boon for the Trump campaign and don’t want other Republicans to siphon from the pot.
Far-right leaders from around the world are expressing their support for Trump in the aftermath of the verdict. The Kremlin called the verdict a “de-facto elimination of political rivals”, while Viktor Orbán, prime minister of Hungary, called on Trump to “keep on fighting”.
Trump is set to be sentenced on 11 July, and while the decision rests entirely with Juan Merchan, the judge overseeing the case, experts say Trump is unlikely to receive prison time. Either way, yesterday’s verdict does not disqualify him as a presidential candidate, nor does it bar him from again sitting in the Oval Office.
Trump to hold press conference at Trump Tower at 11am ET
One day after a New York jury found him guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business records, Donald Trump is expected to hold a press conference at 11am ET at Trump Tower in New York City. Tune in here for more.
Updated
While most of Trump’s cronies have lined up to sing his praises during the trial – literally in person in some cases, many of them wearing the Trump “uniform” of suit, white shirt and red tie – the two most important women in his life remained nearly silent throughout.
His sons Eric and Don Jr, as usual, competed with each other to shout loudest. But neither Ivanka, his daughter, nor Melania, his wife, showed their faces at the Manhattan courthouse.
And when the verdict came down, Ivanka – who along with her husband, Jared Kushner, has distanced herself from her father’s 2024 campaign – tweeted just four words: “I love you Dad”, notably avoiding saying anything about the verdict or the case itself.
Melania, meanwhile, who has reportedly been furious at having her marriage dragged through the mud (Trump’s alleged affair with Karen McDougal overlapped with a period during which she was pregnant), has yet to make any comment whatsoever – leaving an opening for the meme brigade to interpret her possible reactions:
and now we go live to Melania for her reaction pic.twitter.com/AqdZItib18
— Jeff Tiedrich (@itsJeffTiedrich) May 30, 2024
Statement from Melania Trump supporting her beloved husband: pic.twitter.com/pXBw8lFJ6p
— Ron Filipkowski (@RonFilipkowski) May 31, 2024
BREAKING:
— Christian Greco (@ChristGrec) May 30, 2024
Melania spotted after the guilty #verdict.#TrumpTrialThursday pic.twitter.com/nvWCYwzPoi
Updated
In the battleground states of Wisconsin and Georgia, voters weighed in on the Donald Trump’s guilty verdict and its potential effects on November’s presidential election.
“I think it’s a travesty,” said Jeff Clay, 55, from Locust Grove, Georgia. “I think that it will go to appeal and it will be immediately overturned. I think it was a partisan judge. I think it was a very partisan political process.”
“I’m glad to see him be held accountable in some criminal way,” said Cheyenne Carter, a 25-year-old administrative assistant in deep-blue Madison, Wisconsin. “I would actually enjoy seeing him go to prison, or see some type of actual prison time – unfortunately, I’m sure that won’t happen.”
But like a number of others the Guardian spoke to, Carter doesn’t believe the verdict will change that many minds.
“I feel like people have made their opinion about him for years now, and it’s like, you can’t change it this far in,” said Carter.
Read more here:
UK opposition leader Keir Starmer says a Labour government would 'work with whoever' Americans elect
British opposition leader Keir Starmer told BBC Radio Scotland that a Labour government in London would “work with whoever” Americans choose as their president.
“Obviously we respect the decision of the court, the independent court — there’s a bit of process to go with sentencing and appeal,” Starmer said. “But we are in an unprecedented situation. There’s no doubt about that.”
He added: “Ultimately, whether he’s elected president will be a matter for the American people and, obviously, if we’re privileged to come in to serve, we would work with whoever they choose as their president.”
Trump attorney: team will appeal verdict 'as soon as we can'
Todd Blanche, an attorney for Donald Trump, was on CNN saying that his team is prepared to “vigorously fight” the conviction by filing motions over the next couple of weeks.
“If that is not successful, then as soon as we can appeal we will,” he said.
When asked by CNN host Kaitlan Collins on what grounds he is seeking an appeal, Blanche said he felt the publicity and timing of the trial “was really unfair to President Trump”.
“Our system of justice isn’t supposed to be a system of justice in which every single person that walks into the courtroom knows about the case,” he said.
When Collins pushed back that the level of publicity was unavoidable in this case, Blanche responded: “The law doesn’t say, if you can’t avoid it, tough luck. The law says a person is entitled to a fair trial in front of a jury of their peers. We just think that because of everything around the lead-up to the trial, it made it very difficult for the jury to evaluate the evidence independent of what they knew coming in.”
There are three remaining criminal cases against Trump – two related to the attempts to overturn the 2020 election result, and a third over the storage of documents at Mar-a-Lago. The remaining cases will be unlikely to reach trial before the election.
Updated
Here are some more reactions to the verdict from around the world:
Viktor Orbán, prime minister of Hungary:
I’ve known President @realDonaldTrump to be a man of honour. As President, he always put America first, he commanded respect around the world and used this respect to build peace. Let the people make their verdict this November! Keep on fighting, Mr. President!
— Orbán Viktor (@PM_ViktorOrban) May 31, 2024
Matteo Salvini, deputy prime minister of Italy:
Solidarity and full support for @realDonaldTrump, victim of judicial harassment and a process of political nature. In Italy, we are sadly familiar with the weaponization of the justice system by the left, given that for years attempts have been made to eliminate political…
— Matteo Salvini (@matteosalvinimi) May 31, 2024
Updated
Kremlin attacks Trump verdict as 'elimination of political rivals'
The Kremlin told reporters on Friday that Donald Trump’s guilty verdict was proof that all legal and illegal means were being used in the United States to get rid of political rivals”, Reuters is reporting.
“The fact that a de-facto elimination of political rivals by all possible legal and illegal means is going on there is obvious,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
While Donald Trump and his team argued for a change of venue for the New York hush money trial because Manhattan was so heavily Democrat, New York was where Trump made his name. The 58-storey Trump Tower has been a part of the skyline since 1983. His hit reality show, The Apprentice, took place here.
Very unfair to try Donald Trump in the city where he lived most of his life, where his name is on several buildings, where he made his fortune, where his TV show was set and where the charged crimes were committed
— farhad manjoo (former bluecheck) (@fmanjoo) May 30, 2024
After the verdict was read yesterday, New Yorkers reacted with both jubilation and horror.
“I was cheering. I was thrilled by the verdict,” said Lisa Taylor, 49. “I just wish it would keep him from being re-elected. Surely, the Republicans are scrambling now to be, like, what do we do? But given their history I’m not optimistic they’ll do anything.”
“I see this as a political trial, but they can spin it a lot of different ways. I’m a Trump supporter no matter what,” said Jerry Sharkey III, from Harlem.
Read more here:
Polls: conviction makes no difference to about two-thirds of voters
A PBS NewsHour/NPR/Marist found that 67% of voters said a conviction would make no difference for them in November’s presidential election. Meanwhile, about 25% of Republicans said they would be even more likely to vote for Donald Trump if he were found guilty.
A Quinnipiac University national survey had similar findings, with 62% of voters saying a conviction would make no difference to how they were voting in November.
However: a ABC News/Ipsos poll found that 20% of Trump supporters said that a conviction would at least cause them to “reconsider” – 4% said they would change their vote.
The Guardian’s David Smith has more here:
Updated
The campaign for Donald Trump was quick to fundraise off the back of the guilty verdict, with an email to his supporters declaring him a “political prisoner”.
The email questions whether “this is the end of America?” before saying that Trump had been convicted “in a RIGGED political Witch Hunt trial: I DID NOTHING WRONG!”
Meanwhile, Politico is reporting that the Trump campaign is telling down ballot Republicans to back off of fundraising for themselves off the former president’s convictions – because they believe the trial to be a fundraising boon for the Trump campaign and don’t want other Republicans to siphon from the pot.
“Any Republican elected official, candidate or party committee siphoning money from President Trump’s donors are no better than Judge Merchan’s daughter,” Trump co-campaign manager Chris LaCivita told Politico. “We’re keeping a list, we’ll be checking it twice and we aren’t in the spirit of Christmas.”
Trump’s team had long argued that judge Juan Merchan had a conflict of interest in overseeing the the trial because his daughter, Loren, is a political consultant whose firm has worked for prominent Democrats including Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. Judicial ethics experts and the New York State Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics determined that her work for Democrats was not grounds for recusal.
'A rigged trial': what Trump has said about the verdict
As expected, Donald Trump reacted defiantly to a New York jury finding him guilty on 34 counts of felony falsification of business records.
“This was a rigged trial by a conflicted judge who was corrupt,” Trump said at the courthouse after the verdict was read. “This was a rigged trial, a disgrace.”
He decried judge Juan Merchan for not allowing him a change of venue, and accused Alvin Bragg, the Manhattan district attorney who brought the case against him, as “a Soros-backed D.A.” – while a financial link exists between Bragg and George Soros, the billionaire Democratic megadonor, Soros did not directly give money to Bragg’s campaign A spokesman for Soros previously told The New York Times that the two men had never met.
Trump maintained that he was a “very innocent man” and that “we didn’t do a thing wrong”.
“The real verdict is going to be November 5 by the people,” Trump said. “They know what happened here. Everybody knows what happened here.”
Updated
Cheers – and moans – around New York in response to a jury finding Donald Trump guilty:
What happens now?
Donald Trump is set to be sentenced on 11 July, after being found guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records. While the decision rests entirely with Juan Merchan, the judge overseeing the case, experts say Trump is unlikely to receive prison time: the crime he has been found guilty of is a non-violent paper crime, and he is a first-time offender.
Either way, yesterday’s verdict does not disqualify him as a presidential candidate, nor does it bar him from again sitting in the Oval Office.
Read more here:
Updated
In 2016, Donald Trump campaigned against Hillary Clinton to chants of “lock her up”, threatening to appoint a special prosecutor to go after her for use of a personal email account while she was secretary of state (an FBI investigation that year deemed that while Clinton and her aides were “extremely careless” in their handling of classified information, they should not face criminal charges).
After yesterday’s verdict, Clinton took the stage at the Vital Voices Global Festival in Washington with a broad smile. She doesn’t even say Trump’s name, but asked the audience: “Anything going on today?” The crowd responded with raucous cheers.
Reminder that Hillary Clinton - who won the popular vote and should have been the first woman President - was one of millions of victims of Donald Trump’s plot to steal an election. pic.twitter.com/2uDSKbVYcJ
— Shannon Watts (@shannonrwatts) May 31, 2024
On Instagram, Clinton posted an image on Instagram of a mug with her cartoon outline sipping from a mug and the phrase “turns out she was right about everything” on it.
Hillary Clinton is on Instagram selling mugs that say:
— Leah McElrath (@leahmcelrath) May 31, 2024
“Turns out she was right about everything”
[Link: https://t.co/bplII92qhZ] pic.twitter.com/6xwAAVQkby
The guilty verdict made the front page of newspapers across the world – Donald Trump is now the first US president, former or current, to be convicted of a crime.
In New York, The New York Post – a tabloid that has long been loyal to Trump – decried the verdict as an injustice.
Front page of the New York Post is out pic.twitter.com/ufewIqMnD8
— Yashar Ali 🐘 (@yashar) May 31, 2024
Meanwhile, the city’s paper of record, The New York Times, had this to say:
The front page of The New York Times for Friday, May 31, 2024. https://t.co/DzpU7iBUMe pic.twitter.com/jqluYRWEIs
— The New York Times (@nytimes) May 31, 2024
See more front pages here:
Joe Biden's campaign: 'No one is above the law'
While Joe Biden himself declined to comment on the verdict, his campaign sent out an email stating “no one is above the law”.
“In New York today, we saw that no one is above the law. Donald Trump has always mistakenly believed he would never face consequences for breaking the law for his own personal gain,” wrote Michael Tyler, Biden’s communications director.
“But today’s verdict does not change the fact that the American people face a simple reality. There is still only one way to keep Donald Trump out of the Oval Office: at the ballot box. Convicted felon or not, Trump will be the Republican nominee for president.”
Ian Sams, spokesperson for the White House counsel’s office, said in a statement: “We respect the rule of law, and have no additional comment.”
Read more on reactions to yesterday’s verdict:
Donald Trump found guilty on all 34 counts of falsifying business records
Good morning.
Yesterday, a New York jury found Donald Trump guilty of of falsifying business records in a criminal hush-money scheme to influence the outcome of the 2016 election, an unprecedented moment in US history.
The former president has decried the trial as “rigged”, calling it a “disgrace”.
“Twelve everyday jurors vowed to make a decision based on the evidence and the law and the evidence and the law alone,” said Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg. “Their deliberations led them to a unanimous conclusion beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant Donald J Trump is guilty.”
He added: “While this defendant might be unlike any other in American history, we arrived at this trial and ultimately today this verdict in the same manner as every other case.”
We’ll have more updates and analysis as the day unfolds.
