Former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson (R) urged other members of the Republican Party to take seriously the recent conviction of former President Trump in his New York silence case and to think about what it could mean for upcoming elections.
“We had 12 jurors who, by all accounts, were really dedicated to seeking the truth in this case, and all 12 unanimously said on 34 counts: Donald Trump is guilty. Hutchinson said Friday on “NewsNation Now”.
“You can challenge the judge’s jury instructions, obviously it could be reversed on appeal, but don’t diminish what the jury concluded after hearing weeks of testimony. And that’s the main point,” he added. “This is a serious moment for the United States of America. No one should be happy about the conviction of a former president.”
His advice came after Trump became the first former president to be convicted of felony crimes on Thursday. He faced 34 counts of falsifying business records related to a secret payment made to adult film star Stormy Daniels in the early days of the 2016 election to buy her silence about an alleged past affair, which he denies.
The former president delivered remarks Friday in the lobby of Trump Tower in New York City, where he criticized Judge Juan Merchan for the verdict and called the trial “a sham” and “rigged.”
Hutchinson said Republicans should be “very concerned” about how they approach sentencing.
“Republicans should be very concerned that we have a would-be candidate who has now been convicted of serious crimes. And that is the message that I think is important,” he said on Friday. “We must be careful about how we approach this.”
The former governor, who suspended his long-shot bid for the White House in January, acknowledged that when the case was presented by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, he did not agree with it.
“I’m a former prosecutor. I know how to evaluate cases. This seemed like overkill at first. But as the prosecution presented their case, obviously they met the technical requirements of the law. And they presented a case that the jury understood,” he said Hutchinson.
“So yeah, I was skeptical about it. I didn’t think it should have been brought, but it was,” he added.
Trump’s allies in the party and those fighting for a potential vice presidential spot have for weeks echoed the former president’s criticism of the case, with several candidates even appearing in court. After Thursday’s conviction, they unleashed attacks on the judge, the district attorney and the legal system.
Hutchinson has rejected these efforts to rally behind Trump, saying he would not want to be in that position. He added that while the conviction might energize Trump’s base, he doesn’t think the former president would get additional votes as a result.
“No Republican wants to cross swords with Donald Trump. And then if he says something crazy, everyone tries to support him or at least not disagree with him,” Hutchinson said. “That’s not how you work in a party or that’s not how you win elections, the most important thing.”
“So we need to be more direct. The United States will resolve this as it always does,” he added.
The former president will not be sentenced in the case until July 11, which is just four days before he officially becomes the Republican Party’s presidential nominee at the Republican National Convention. The conviction does not prevent you from running for public office.
NewsNation is owned by Nexstar Media Group, which also owns The Hill.
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25560744/247209_Google_Nest_Hardware_OGrove_0013.jpg?w=150&resize=150,150&ssl=1 "Hands-on with Google’s new Nest Learning Thermostat")
