Former President Donald Trump was found guilty of 34 felonies by the jury in his “hush money” trial in New York on Thursday, making him the first former president in U.S. history to be convicted of a crime. The presumptive Republican nominee for president is now also a convicted felon, a label that could reverberate across the electorate in the months between now and Election Day in November.
As expected many elected officials have chimed in on the convictions including the candidates in the 16th Congressional race, Rep. Jamaal Bowman and his opponent Westchester County Executive George Latimer.
Congressman Bowman who experienced the January 6, 2021, heavily armed, Trump-incited mob attack of the United States Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. during his first week in office shared the following statement;
“No one in this country is above the law – including former President Trump. Being convicted for falsifying business records with hush money is only the beginning of being held accountable for his crimes. Trump attempted to illegally overturn election results in Georgia and worked to incite the insurrection at the Capitol, both in an effort to overthrow our government to advance his fascist cause. His continued calls for protests following his arrest are just another dog whistle for his followers: destroy our democracy. Republicans will continue to claim this was a political conviction, but they can’t continue to hide behind their lies, misinformation, and racist attacks. It’s time that we ensure Trump is banned from running for any public office again and from there, finally take action to fix our democracy.”
George Latimer, Bowman’s Congressional challenger for the 16th District in New York, released the following statement on former President Donald Trump’s guilty verdict on all 34 felony counts in his “hush money” trial in New York:
“In America, the principle of equal justice under law is applied to everyone, regardless of their status, wealth, or former political position. Today’s guilty verdict against former president Trump reinforces a fundamental value: no one is above the law, not even a former president.
“While this historic verdict reaffirms our commitment to the rule of law, justice, and democracy, Trump remains the most serious threat to our nation and our collective engagement in the upcoming election could not be more important. We must continue to stay the course, mobilize voters to elect representatives who will go to Washington to protect our democracy, fight against extremism and xenophobia, and produce real, tangible results to improve the lives of all working people regardless of their zip code.”
Bowman and Latimer face off in one of the most highly publicized and hotly contested Congressional races in the county. They are on the ballot for the June 25th Democratic Primary. Congressman Bowman who is trying to defend his seat against Latimer’s undefeated record and AIPAC’s Millions faced-off in the News 12 exclusively held head-to-head debate, Monday 13th and will face-off again in the NAACP 16th Congressional District Branches sponsored candidate forum, Wednesday, June 5th.
The candidates may not agree on much but they both agree a New York jury finding Donald Trump guilty on all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records is a good day for democracy.
