Polk County’s four members of the U.S. House of Representatives responded promptly Thursday to the announcement that a jury in New York had found former President Donald Trump guilty on 34 charges of falsifying corporate records related to his 2016 presidential campaign.
“It’s a dark and stunning day in America,” said Rep. Scott Franklin, R-Lakeland, posted on X, formerly Twitter. “If a former president is convicted of illegal charges in a sham trial based on the testimony of a whore and a thug, everyone should be terrified. They can and will come for you too, unless we retake our country on November 5.”
That is the date of the presidential election, on which Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, will face President Joe Bidena Democrat, in a 2020 rematch.
“DA (Alvin) Bragg’s case against President Trump was nothing but a partisan political sham by the Democrats,” said Rep. Laurel Lee, R-Brandon, wrote in a statement. “The entire prosecution should never have happened and is very clearly politically motivated, led by a rogue prosecutor and a conflicted judge.
“As a former prosecutor and judge, I am deeply disappointed that our justice system was manipulated and politicized in this way. It is disheartening to see that the outcome of this case was not supported by either facts or law.”
Lee served as an assistant U.S. attorney for the Middle District of Florida and as a circuit judge in Hillsborough County.
“This is a sad day for our country — the latest example of the bipartisan justice system being weaponized against President Trump,” Rep. Daniel Webster, R-Clermont, said in a written statement. “This sham trial should have been dismissed before it even started. Blinded by partisan anger, prosecutor Alvin Bragg failed to prove a specific crime committed, while the prosecution could not provide credible evidence.
The road ahead: What’s next after Donald Trump was convicted of 34 charges in a hush-money trial?
“Make no mistake: there was no crime, no victim, and the key witness is a convicted liar. Nevertheless, efforts to take down Donald Trump continued, thanks to the help of a partisan judge. Since this trial began in April, it has been clear that the trial is nothing more than a witch hunt against President Trump. The American people see through this politicization of the rule of law and see it as nothing more than an attempt to interfere in the 2024 elections.”
Rep. Darren Soto, D-Kissimmee, issued a brief statement about X:
“Fmr. Pres Trump had his day in court and finally faced justice. This case proves once again that in our country no one is above the law. We must respect the jury’s decision and allow the appeal process to proceed.”
Soto’s district includes small portions of eastern Polk County.
This article originally appeared in The Ledger: Polk County’s U.S. representatives react to Trump’s conviction in New York
