Trump vows to appeal 'scam' trial verdict: 'The judge was a tyrant'

Former President Donald Trump on Friday vowed to appeal the guilty verdict in his New York hush money case, declaring that the judge's conduct had given him grounds to do so.

"We're going to be appealing this scam," he declared during a press conference at Trump Tower. "The judge was a tyrant."

"We're gonna fight," he insisted. "We will continue the fight. We're going to Make American Great Again!"

A jury on Thursday found Trump guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business records as part of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's prosecution in connection with a 2016 payment his then-attorney, Michael Cohen, made to Stormy Daniels.

Trump has long contended that the case was part of a political witch hunt designed to stifle his 2024 bid for the White House. He also twice sought the recusal of acting Justice Juan Merchan on the grounds of his daughter's employment with Authentic, a firm that boasts both President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris as clients. Merchan twice refused to recuse himself.

"As far as the trial itself, it was very unfair. We weren't allowed to use our election expert under any circumstances. You saw what happened to some of the witnesses... they were literally crucified," he said.

"It was a rigged trial. We wanted a venue change... we wanted a judge change," he added.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter.