WASHINGTON – Republicans in Congress have found a new way to prove their loyalty donald trump: Migrate to New York City and attack the US legal system in the courtroom where their criminal trial for hiding the money is underway.
Nearly a dozen Republican lawmakers spent Thursday not working in Washington but hanging around a Manhattan courtroom where the Republican presidential nominee is sitting. facing 34 criminal charges of falsifying business records to disguise payments made to keep porn star Stormy Daniels quiet about an alleged extramarital marriage to Trump a decade before he ran for president.
The goal of Republicans heading to Trump’s trial is simple: to be seen on television criticizing the court, the judge, the witnesses or the laws in general – whatever it takes to get credit for fighting on their behalf. This amounts to a party-wide acceptance of grievances once espoused only by Trump and an attempt to bind the entire Republican Party to the former president’s victim narrative.
“I want every news story to start asking the question: What is the crime?” Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colorado), one of the lawmakers in court Thursday, shouted at the end of the a press event they held. “The defendant does not know the crime that was committed!”
“Beetle juice!” one questioner shouted back, a reference to Boebert receiving expelled from a musical production from the film last year for vaping and groping his date.
In the weeks since the trial began, Trump has alternated between sleeping through procedures and violating a gag order – 10 times ― this prevents him from commenting on witnesses, jurors, prosecutors, the judge, the Manhattan district attorney or their family members. He has been repeatedly fined and warned of a possible prison sentence if he continues like this.
Enter Trump’s staunchest supporters in Congress, who, especially in an election year, are eager to align themselves with him and carry out their attacks on the rule of law.
“This is a made-up crime!” Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Florida) falsely stated at the press event with Boebert. He accused one of the witnesses in the case, Trump’s former personal lawyer Michael Cohen, of lying. He referred to New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan as “this corrupt judge” and accused his family members of being corrupt as well.
“We are seeing today how far the Democratic Party will go to try to rig or steal another election,” Rep. Bob Good (R-Va.), chairman of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, falsely claimed at the event. “They tried to do this in 2020. They are doing it again in 2024, trying to keep the nominee off the ballot.”
In fact, Trump tried to steal the 2020 presidential election by spreading a lie about widespread voter fraud, and Good was one of 147 republicans in Congress who voted to reject the election results to help Trump try to steal them.
“You have a corrupt prosecutor. You have a corrupt witness. You have a corrupt judge,” Good said, which is exactly what Trump would love to hear. “This is a dishonest and false trial.”
The Republican lawmakers who attended Trump’s trial on Thursday are here two days after House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) ruled that he too, should make an appearance. Johnson, who is a lawyer and architect of the Republican Party’s plan to throw out the 2020 election results, called Trump “a friend” and said the case against him is absurd.
“I called President Trump and told him I wanted to be here in person to denounce what is a travesty of justice,” Johnson said in a statement. a press event on Tuesday outside the court. “This is the fifth week that President Trump has been in court over this sham trial.”
“I’m disgusted by what’s happening here,” Johnson added, saying the judicial system is “being abused” in Trump’s trial. There is no evidence of this.
Republicans who attended Trump’s trial repeated many of the same attacks on the judge and the judge’s family, and on the credibility of witnesses. One reason for this may be that Trump is editing talking points and handing them over to his allies to be presented outside the courtroom. A New York magazine journalist said he saw Trump doing it this week.
Rep. Cory Mills (R-Florida), who was part of a group of Republican lawmakers who attended Trump’s trial on Tuesday, disputed the idea that the Republican presidential nominee is directing his allies to say things that he is not. allowed to say because of his gag order.
“By the way, it’s almost insulting when people try to act as if we, as members of Congress who drafted legislation for the bill, aren’t smart enough to come to our own conclusions,” Mills told HuffPost. “I find it insulting when it’s almost like we’re told that we’re puppets here because we can’t create our own original thought process.”
In addition to trying to get into Trump’s good graces, some Republicans are attending his trial because they are auditioning to be his pick for vice president. They include former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, Senator J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) and Senator Tim Scott (RS.C.).
Back at the Capitol, some Republicans complained about their colleagues walking off the job just to draw media attention to themselves for standing with Trump. So many Republican lawmakers came to New York City on Thursday that the House Oversight Committee had to postpone a hearing.
“I think they are impacting our agenda, and that’s a problem,” said one House Republican, who requested anonymity to speak freely. “They I want to be in the spotlight. There are pack horses and show ponies in this place.”
Some Senate Republicans expressed similar sentiments.
“I think it’s a terrible mistake for our country to see people attacking our legal system,” Senator Mitt Romney (R-Utah) said Wednesday in an MSNBC interview.
Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) summarized the situation to HuffPost on Tuesday as “ridiculous” and left us with one question.
“Do we have anything to do around here other than watch a stupid porn trial?”
Arthur Delaney contributed reporting.
