Few things in this world are totally predictable, but it’s not going out on a limb to say Trump will blame his conviction on anyone but himself (watch video below).
CNN reports that Trump reacted to the guilty verdict by once again claiming “this was done by the Biden administration in order to wound or hurt … a political opponent,” (story here).
In fact, this was a state case brought by a local prosecutor, and the Biden administration’s alleged involved is nothing more than Trump’s fevered imagination (see story here).
Earlier in the week, Trump called the judge “corrupt and conflicted,” and the case “fake and made up” (story here). That, too, is blowing smoke. But Trump’s loyal fans will believe his nonsense. Their minds are closed. And GOP politicians, who’ve long called the case “politically motivated,” are calling the verdict a “sham.”
Our criminal justice system has safeguards against such things; and to make their case, Republicans have to explain why all these “safeties,” so to speak, failed:
- The prosecutor who initially reviews a case is under ethical obligations to only bring justified charges.
- A grand jury of ordinary citizens reviews the case presented by the prosecution and makes an independent decision to charge the defendant.
- The judge has the power to dismisses unwarranted charges, or charges brought for an improper purpose.
- A jury of ordinary citizens, not the prosecutor or judge, decides guilt or innocence.
Ultimately it took at least 18 grand jurors and all 12 trial jurors, all randomly chosen ordinary citizens from various walks of life, to agree that Trump committed these crimes. It was they, those citizens, who concluded the evidence of guilt was sufficient. Not the prosecutor, not the judge, not Biden secretly pulling strings.
Trump was found guilty because he is guilty, not matter what he says. By the way, judges can take a defendant’s lack of remorse and refusal to accept responsibility for their actions into account when imposing a sentence.