Johnson Calls on Supreme Court to Reverse ‘Dangerous’ Trump Verdict

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said that the U.S. Supreme Court should get involved and overturn former President Donald Trump’s guilty verdict in his business records falsification trial in New York, with the speaker asserting that the circumstances of the case have led to an erosion of public faith in America’s justice system.

“There’s a lot of developments yet to come, but I do believe the Supreme Court should step in, obviously, this is totally unprecedented—and it’s dangerous to our system,” Mr. Johnson said in a May 31 appearance on Fox and Friends.

The political stakes of Johnson’s appeal are equally high. As the nation gears up for the 2024 election, the outcome of this case could have a significant impact on the political landscape. For Trump and his supporters, overturning the verdict is seen as essential to preserving his political viability and countering what they perceive as an orchestrated campaign to silence him.

The guilty verdict made President Trump the first former president in U.S. history to be convicted of a crime, with the former president vowing to appeal the verdict and calling the trial “very unfair.”

“This is a scam. This is a rigged trial … this is a rigged judge,” President Trump said at a press conference on May 31, adding that a specific election expert wasn’t allowed to testify on certain issues related to the trial.

Conversely, opponents of Trump argue that the verdict is a necessary affirmation of the rule of law and accountability. They contend that overturning the verdict would set a dangerous precedent, undermining efforts to hold powerful figures accountable for their actions.

Hans von Spakovsky, senior legal fellow at The Heritage Foundation’s Edwin Meese III Center for Legal and Judicial Studies, told The Epoch Times that he understands and shares Mr. Johnson’s frustration at what he described as an obvious “miscarriage of justice” that took place in the Manhattan courtroom.

However, Mr. von Spakovsky said that the prospect of Supreme Court involvement before the appeals process plays out in New York state courts is not realistic.

“There are certainly issues that give the Supreme Court jurisdiction over the state court conviction, given the fundamental violation of Donald Trump’s substantive due process rights under the U.S. Constitution in the way the trial judge and prosecution mishandled the case,” he said. “But I don’t believe the Supreme Court will take the case until the state appeals process is exhausted.”

Mr. Johnson said in his appearance on Fox and Friends that the path for an appeal to make its way to the high court would take some time but he expressed confidence that the verdict would ultimately be tossed.

“I think they’ll set this straight, but it’s going to take a while,” Mr. Johnson said. “The process takes a while to play out. The Democrats know that, of course, and they’re dragging it out. That was the whole objective. They want to try to bankrupt Donald Trump.”