Two days after Donald Trump was convicted of 34 crimes in a hush-money case, Iowa Republicans gathered in Des Moines to urge their supporters to support him and other Republican candidates in the upcoming November elections.
“Joe Biden’s America is more dangerous than we’ve seen in years,” U.S. Senator Joni Ernst said Saturday at her annual Roast and Ride fundraiser. “It is less safe here in America because of his policies. But we cannot give in to this way of life.”
When she and other Iowa Republicans took the stage, both unequivocally supported the former president, despite the New York jury’s verdict coming after just 10 hours of deliberation.
“It is time to restore confidence in our justice system and stop the political persecution of Donald J. Trump,” Ernst said to applause.
Trump was found guilty of all 34 charges in his criminal trial in New York on May 30, becoming the first former US president to be convicted of a crime. He was convicted of falsifying company records in an attempt to conceal hush money payments to porn star Stormy Daniels to keep her story hidden from voters before the 2016 presidential election.
Trump could serve up to four years in prison, with sentencing scheduled for July 11 — just days before the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.
Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds, who said ahead of the Iowa caucuses that she supported Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis because she did not believe Trump could win the general election, also gave the former president plenty of support Saturday.
“They have weaponized the justice system with a political prosecution of our candidate and Biden’s opponent,” Reynolds said. “But I can tell you without hesitation that on November 5, the people of this country will cooperate. And $53 million in 24 hours is a pretty good indication of where the population of this country is.”
Trump’s campaign has said it raised $53 million the day after his conviction.
U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley and U.S. Reps. Ashley Hinson and Zach Nunn also used some of their time on stage to support Trump.
“The only way for Democrats, if they know they’ve lost to President Trump, is to try to win back the House of Representatives so they can impeach him on day one. So they can try to oust him on day two. And so on day three and four they will just try to oust him,” said Nunn, who is seeking re-election for the swing 3.rd Congressional district in central Iowa. “Because, as we’ve seen this week, that’s the only thing the Democrats have in their playbook.”
When asked by reporters whether she has confidence in the independent jury system that found Trump guilty, Ernst again criticized the trial.
“If you listen to the judge’s instructions, they were mind-boggling to me,” she said. “So one juror might be able to find one charge guilty, and then it could be considered unanimous. This was ridiculous. It’s a sham. I worry.”
The judge’s instructions did require that jurors unanimously agree that Trump used unlawful means to interfere in the election, but he said they did not have to agree on what means he used.
Prosecutors accused Trump of falsifying company records to interfere in the 2016 presidential election, using three “illegal means”:
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Violating federal campaign finance laws through a hush money payment to Daniels;
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Falsifying another business document under New York law, such as bank records related to former Trump fixer Michael Cohen’s payment to Daniels’ attorney; And
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Violating New York tax laws.
More: Trump jury had to be unanimous in hush money trial to find him guilty | Fact checking
Wesley Hunt is the headliner at Roast and Ride, known for attracting White House hopefuls
Ernst’s Roast and Ride is known for attracting presidential candidates during caucus years, as well as future hopefuls in the off years.
On Saturday, freshman U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt of Texas was the keynote speaker. An Army veteran who graduated from West Point and served in Iraq, he is on a number of short lists of Trump’s potential vice presidential candidates.
Hunt spoke at a Republican Party of Iowa event in Fort Dodge earlier this year, and he was the keynote speaker at Reynolds’ annual Harvest Festival fundraiser in 2022. But he said his frequent trips to Iowa are due to the fact that his in-laws live in the state. , not because of any future ambitions of the White House.
Hunt told reporters he has not had any conversations with Trump about the vice president’s position.
“President Trump didn’t tell me anything about this,” he said after the event. “My goal at the end of the day is to make sure he gets re-elected and do everything in our power to be able to do that.”
Hunt joined Ernst and about 140 others on the annual motorcycle ride through Des Moines to the Iowa State Fairgrounds.
Joni Ernst plans to stand for re-election in 2026
Hunt and the other Republican speakers who took the stage took time to praise Ernst, who is not running for office this year.
Ernst recently told reporters that she plans to seek a third term in the U.S. Senate, though she said she would be open to a position in Donald Trump’s administration if he is elected in November.
“It would be a great honor to be asked to work in an administration,” she said Saturday. “So I would be open to whatever the president might say — if he asked, I would certainly be willing to respond.”
But beyond that, she said, she plans to seek re-election in 2026.
“Yes,” she said. “Ten out of ten, yes.”
GOP Urges Involvement in 2024 Elections Even Though Iowa Looks ‘So Red’
The rally, which drew about 700 people, took place just days before the June 4 primary, which will kick off Iowa’s general election season.
Republicans urged attendees to remain involved even if it appears they have the upper hand.
“We are so red. I don’t know if we have a redder color than red,” Kaufmann said. “But if the Democrats keep up this foolish, stupid, corrupt nonsense, we will be a redder shade of red.”
Grassley pointed to Iowa’s two targeted congressional races in the 1st and 3rd districts, where national Democrats have pledged to devote resources to ousting Republican incumbents.
“In those districts you have to work really hard for them,” Grassley said. “I’m not saying don’t work hard for (Randy) Feenstra and (Ashley) Hinson. But if you are targeted, a lot of Democratic resources will go to those districts. And we have to work hard to keep all four.”
Ernst told reporters it was important that the speakers encourage Iowans to support Trump again in November.
“We can’t forget it and we have to come out in November,” she said. “We know we are a red state. Some people may take that for granted and think, “He doesn’t need our support. He already has it.’ But we have to drive out the numbers and we have to continue to encourage our neighbors and our friends to get out, as well as people in other states.
USAT TODAY reporter Aysha Bagchi contributed to this story.
Brianne Pfannenstiel is the Des Moines Register’s chief politics reporter. She also covers the 2024 presidential race for USA TODAY as a senior national campaign correspondent. Reach her at bpfann@dmreg.com or 515-284-8244. Follow her on Twitter at @brianneDMR.
This article originally appeared in the Des Moines Register: Iowa Republicans rally behind Donald Trump at Joni Ernst Roast and Ride
