We all know he did it.
Of course he did. Of course Donald Trump, that broken promise in human form, paid hush money to a porn star and covered it up for the benefit of his campaign. All the ink spilled over his trial in New York state court couldn’t obliterate the fact that anyone with a fair mind could listen to the allegations and say: “Sure, that sounds like him.”
So now that the once and potentially future president has been found guilty of 34 felony charges, of course Kansas Republicans have decided to distance themselves from him. They put law and order ahead of individual gratification and believe in adhering to scrupulous moral codes, after all.
As representatives of the heartland, surely these brave men put virtue and the civic good ahead of political expedience.
Nah, I’m just kidding. They rushed to the side of the felon, loudly proclaiming their undying allegiance to a 77-year-old New York real estate developer who has made continual crudeness the cornerstone of his personal brand.
Here are a few of the notable reactions that landed shortly after Trump’s conviction Thursday afternoon.
The political persecution of Donald Trump is the most egregious miscarriage of justice in our nation’s history.
This happens in banana republics, under authoritarian regimes, not here in America.
The true judge and jury will speak loudly in November, and Donald Trump will…
— Dr. Roger Marshall (@RogerMarshallMD) May 30, 2024
Really, Sen. Roger Marshall? The most egregious miscarriage of justice in our nation’s history? What about chattel slavery? How about the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II? For that matter, what about the death of Emmett Till?
Does the conviction of Trump actually outweigh those injustices?
Also, unlike those mentioned earlier who were sold into slavery, or sent to concentration camps, or murdered, Trump actually broke the law. (He likely broke it in many more cases than this one, but his strategy of running out the clock has been more successful in courtrooms outside New York.)
Partisan NY prosecutors just performed the biggest sham in America’s judicial history.
This trial was never about justice—it was about weaponizing our judicial system to keep President Biden’s leading opponent off the campaign trail & in a courtroom away from voters.
— Tracey Mann (@RepMann) May 30, 2024
Not to be outdone by his Senate college, U.S. Rep. Tracey Mann piled on the hyperbole as well.
Personally, I might nominate the Dred Scott decision or Plessy v. Ferguson as the biggest shams in America’s judicial history. You might also consider Bowers v. Hardwick, which upheld the constitutionality of sodomy laws. All of these genuinely harmed large numbers of Americans, as opposed to finding a guilty man guilty.
For that matter, does anyone actually think that Trump has actually been prevented from engaging with voters? Seems as though I’ve heard an awful lot from him recently, and I don’t even want to.
“Show me the man I’ll show you the crime” was coined by Stalin’s Soviet Union and that mindset sadly lives on today in New York City.
This is a dark day for the American justice system. This prosecution, in a state where the attorney general campaigned for office on a promise to…
— Derek Schmidt (@DerekSchmidtKS) May 30, 2024
Former Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt served as the state’s chief law enforcement officer. Does he actually believe that a man who committed adultery with an adult film actress and then conspired to conceal hush money payments deserves leniency? How about if the man had been found liable for the rape of another woman?
If that man were a Democrat, rather than a Republican, would he feel the same way?
But sure, reference the USSR. Because that demonstrates a level-headed attitude toward our country’s justice system as Schmidt runs for the 2nd Congressional District.
This is lawlessness meted out by a kangaroo court. Biden should be ashamed. Third world dictators prosecute their opponents, not American Presidents. This strengthens my resolve to ensure Trump is re-elected so we can restore America’s faith in our legal system. #ksleg
— Jeff Kahrs (@Kahrs4Congress) May 30, 2024
Schmidt’s opponent in the Republican primary contributes this little masterpiece of sanity.
Trump faced these charges in a state court, and they were brought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, not the current president of the United States. Unlike Trump, Joe Biden has made a point of staying out of court cases involving his rival. If you’ll recall, Trump was impeached the first time for trying to dig up dirt on Biden during a phone call with Ukraine’s president.
Look, I don’t know what’s going to happen in the wake of this verdict, and neither does anyone else.
If the jury had deliberated for weeks, if it had been unable to reach a decision, if it had found Trump not guilty, the presidential election would likely continue unchanged. But a unanimous guilty verdict on all charges after less than two days of deliberation? Sounds like a big deal to me. Sounds like the rule of law has prevailed and our institutions held a powerful, petty man to account.
I could be wrong, of course. In the meantime, Kansas Republicans should consider whether they really want to fall in lockstep behind a convicted felon.
Clay Wirestone is Kansas Reflector opinion editor. Through its opinion section, Kansas Reflector works to amplify the voices of people who are affected by public policies or excluded from public debate. Find information, including how to submit your own commentary, here.
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