Donald Trump's 34 felony convictions Thursday may have been an unprecedented moment in American political history. Some federal-level politicians, though, seemed to have little interest in discussing the trial result at all — or even used it to pick fights within their own party.
Most area Republicans denounced the verdict. U.S. Rep Mike Kelly, for one, began a statement in response by asking, "Where is the outrage, America?" and ended it by citing Thomas Paine's assertion that "these are the times that try men's souls"
"We must ... not let a rigged jury, a compromised judge and the crooked Biden Justice System get away with the greatest injustice our Nation has ever witnessed!" Kelly said.
The case was handled by New York's state court system, rather than by federal prosecutors or judges. And how Trump's conviction compares to other historic American injustices is a matter for debate. But Kelly was joined in his sentiments by a social media post from fellow Republican Guy Reschenthaler, who posted the conviction was "the worst abuse of power in American history" and urged citizens to "pray for our nation and President Trump."
Some other Republicans, notably including those facing contentious elections this fall, were somewhat less sweeping. Republican Senate candidate Dave McCormick said "this miscarriage of justice is despicable" and called Thursday's outcome "a terrible day for America and for trust in our justice system."
Rob Mercuri, a state House member running for Congress against incumbent Democrat Chris Deluzio this fall, was more restrained.
In response to a query from WESA, his campaign furnished a statement that asserted, "These trials serve as a distasteful partisan distraction from the real progress the American people need. We are at a crossroads on so many important matters, and I remain laser-focused on leading the 17th congressional district forward by fighting inflation, growing our economy, and keeping our community safe."
Deluzio himself offered a terse statement: "No one is above the law." That was a standard response from a number of Democrats, including state attorney general candidate Eugene DePasquale. But Deluzio — whose district includes Beaver County, where 58% of voters backed Trump in 2020 — arguably was the only Democrat representing the region in Washington, D.C. to reckon directly with the verdict.
U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, who is slated to face McCormick in his reelection bid this fall, appeared to have released no statement about the verdict as of mid-day Friday. Neither his office nor his campaign responded to a request.
His colleague Sen. John Fetterman, meanwhile, used the opportunity to snark at progressive Democrats, with whom he has been in a running battle at least since last October's Hamas terror attacks and Israel's subsequent military campaign in Gaza.
Referring to a pro-Palestinian movement that encouraged Democrats to write in or cast ballots for "uncommitted" rather than vote for President Joe Biden in primary contests, Fetterman tweeted "that vote uncommitted/abandon Biden thing isn't aging well lol." He paired the observation with a headline from a story about Trump's claims that the trial was "rigged."
Fetterman's office did not respond to a WESA request for further comment Friday. But if Fetterman, who's recently said he's "not exactly sure what [Trump's] trials are about," hoped such statements would bring progressives back into the fold, there's little sign it has worked.
Critics of U.S. support for Israel popped up in response to his post. U.S. Rep. Summer Lee's only response to the verdict, meanwhile, appears to be her retweet of an activist group's argument that if a felon could still run for president, then Pennsylvania should allow those with felony convictions to run in down-ballot races as well. (State law prevents that.)
Lee's office did not respond to a request for further comment Friday morning. By that point, she had renewed criticisms of Israel's war in Gaza and the Biden Administration's support for the country.
