Former President Donald Trump gave a speech on May 31, the day after he was found guilty in a hush-money trial at Trump Tower in New York City.
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Spencer Pratt/Getty Images
A day after he was found guilty of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, former President Donald Trump spoke at Trump Tower and maintained his innocence.
He repeated some of the false claims about his criminal trial and complained that he was still subject to a gag order. Additionally, he said he had wanted to testify in his own defense but had been advised not to do so.
Trump’s comments were a mixture of self-defense against his conviction and presidential campaign offense. He has repeatedly attacked both the court and President Joe Biden, trying to falsely link the two.
“They are fully cooperating with the White House and the Department of Justice,” Trump said of the court. “As you know, this is all Biden and his people’s doing.”
There is no evidence to support this statement. The case against Trump was brought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and prosecuted under New York state law, meaning it has nothing to do with the White House or the Justice Department.
Trump also reiterated his statement that the judge in the case, Juan Melchan, was “highly conflicted.” There is no evidence of this.
He also complained that he did not testify in the case.
“I will bear witness. I want to bear witness,” he said. “The theory is you’ll never testify because once you testify, no one, if it’s George Washington, will testify because they’re going to sue you for something slightly wrong in what you say, and then they sue you for perjury. .
Trump’s remarks also turned to a range of other topics, such as complaints against him in 2022 by a congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
He also went into lecture mode at one point, repeating his usual anti-immigration rhetoric, saying American schools are full of people speaking “languages we haven’t even heard of.”
His remarks in the Trump Tower atrium came a day after he became the first president, past or present, to be convicted of a crime. Still, legal experts told NPR that Trump is unlikely to face prison time.
Had Trump not served time in prison for his New York conviction, he likely would have been able to vote this fall.
A small group of supporters cheered intermittently during Trump’s speech. The night before, after the verdict was announced, a crowd gathered in the street outside Trump Tower, chanting “New York hates you.”
