Former Vice President Mike Pence has broken his silence on the recent criminal conviction of former President Donald Trump in a New York City courtroom, calling the verdict a “terrible message” and a “disservice to the nation.”
“The conviction of former President Trump on politically motivated charges is an outrage and disservice to the nation,” Pence told. “No one is above the law, but our courts must not become a tool to be used against political opponents. 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 further criticized the broader implications of the conviction, stating, “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 struggling under the failed policies of the Biden administration at home and abroad.”
He expressed hope that Trump’s conviction would be overturned on appeal, which he believes will restore public confidence in the justice system. “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 equal treatment under the law,” Pence added.
Trump was found guilty on Thursday on all counts in his historic and unprecedented criminal trial, making him the first former president of the United States to be convicted of a crime. Moments after the verdict was delivered by the jury, Trump spoke to reporters, denouncing the trial as a “rigged, disgraceful trial” conducted by a “corrupt” judge.
“This was a disgrace. This was a rigged trial by a conflicted judge who was corrupt. It wouldn’t give us a venue change,” Trump said. “We were at 5% or 6% in this district, in this area. This was a rigged, disgraceful trial.”
He concluded his statement with a prediction, “The real verdict is going to be Nov. 5 by the people.”
Pence joins a long list of Republicans defending Trump against the conviction and has previously voiced strong opposition to the indictment. In March 2023, he told CNN, “I think the unprecedented indictment of a former president of the United States on a campaign finance issue is an outrage. And it appears to millions of Americans to be nothing more than a political prosecution.”
