Donald Trump's Two Bitter Words About Guilty Verdict Say It All

Donald Trump was found guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business records relating to hush money payments made to former adult film star Stormy Daniels. With the guilty verdict, Trump is now the first former U.S. president to be convicted in a criminal case. His reaction to the verdict was unlike anything people could have expected, as he was quiet and kept to himself. However, as he exited the courtroom and spoke directly to reporters, he uttered two bitter words that were more in line with his usual rhetoric: "rigged trial."

According to Fox News, Trump told reporters, "This was a disgrace." He continued, "This was a rigged trial by a conflicted judge who was corrupt. It's a rigged trial, a disgrace." The former president seemed in disbelief by the verdict, as he continued to claim his innocence. He said, "This was a rigged, disgraceful trial and the real verdict is gonna be November 5th by the people, and they know what happened here, everyone knows what happened here... We didn't do a thing wrong, I'm a very innocent man." 

In his comments, Trump made claims that this trial and the verdict were the result of President Joe Biden's administration's desire to influence the upcoming 2024 presidential election. As Trump is set to become the Republican nominee, this leaves many questions up in the air about what will happen next with this guilty verdict.

Now that Donald Trump has been convicted, it's a bit of a waiting game as to how everything will unfold. Trump is scheduled to debate President Joe Biden at the end of June. However, whether that will still happen remains unclear. Prior to the verdict, our legal expert believed the debate would continue no matter what. Still, there are a lot of questions surrounding Trump's upcoming plans. But we do know when the former U.S. president is set to be sentenced in this case — and the date is a bit ironic. 

Trump is set to be sentenced on July 11, 2024, just days before the Republican National Convention. The convention, where Trump is expected to be named the Republican presidential nominee, is scheduled to begin on July 15. Based on what Trump said to reporters outside the courtroom, it still seems he has every intention of being named the nominee and running against Biden in the November election. He even posted to Truth Social shortly after the verdict, declaring, "VICTORY ON NOVEMBER 5TH. SAVE AMERICA!!!" Only time will tell what'll happen to Trump's future plans amid this guilty verdict.