Wyoming politicians condemn Trump's 34 felony convictions
Former President Donald Trump was found guilty on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records by a Manhattan jury on Thursday, but for many conservatives, the criminal convictions were nothing more than a rallying cry, especially in ruby-red Republican states.
In Wyoming, a state where Trump received over 70 percent of the state's presidential votes in 2020 and carried all but two of the state's 23 counties, political players from across the state's increasingly divided Republican Party have united in condemning the trial's outcome.
"Today will go down as a shameful day in American history. We now have proof that the radical Democrats will do anything it takes to hold onto the reins of power," the Wyoming Freedom Caucus wrote in a statement posted to Facebook. "Cooking up charges against your political opponent during an election cycle in which you are losing is unprecedented."
The Cowboy State's Secretary of State Chuck Gray, endorsed by Trump in 2022, echoed the sentiments of the Freedom Caucus in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
"Today's "verdict" is absolutely bogus, disgusting, and a catastrophe to the legal system in America. The Left has weopanized [sic] the legal system against President Donald J. Trump and the American People," Gray wrote. "And this "verdict" is left-wing election interference and a threat to the very foundations of our republic."
More: 'Speechless': Swing state voters react to Donald Trump's guilty verdict
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Governor Mark Gordon, who has recently clashed with Gray and was censured by Wyoming's increasingly right-leaning Republican Party at this year's state convention, had similarly harsh words for Trump's conviction on a social media post.
"I am extraordinarily disappointed that our justice system is being used so obviously in an attempt to influence our elections," Gorden wrote. "Voters will choose the next President, not a New York jury. This case has damaged Americans' confidence in an impartial judiciary."
Cy Neff reports on Wyoming politics for Paste BN. You can reach him at cneff@usatoday.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @CyNeffNews