Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
ROSWELL — The responses of New Mexico elected officials and congressional candidates to a jury’s conviction of former U.S. President Donald Trump on May 30 differed based on party affiliation, with Democrats calling it a victory for the rule of law and Republicans decrying it as a criminal prosecution motivated by politics.
Following a six-week trial in Manhattan, a jury returned with a verdict of guilty on 34 criminal counts of falsifying business records against the 45th president and presumptive Republican presidential nominee.
Prosecutors alleged that Trump worked to conceal payments that his attorney made to adult film star Stormy Daniels for her to keep quiet about her alleged past sexual activities with Trump, something jurors determined amounted to a scheme to influence the 2016 presidential election.
With the verdict, Trump is now the first U.S. president in history to be convicted on criminal charges. Trump is scheduled to be sentenced on July 11.
The responses to the historic verdict underscore how Trump and his legal troubles are becoming one of the chief dividing lines in American politics heading into the November election.
“The former president was found guilty on dozens of charges, including election interference. These charges are very serious and make it clear that he is unfit to serve as president,” Sen. Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM) said in a post May 30 on Facebook.
Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM) issued a two-sentence statement on the social media platform X.
“No one is above the law — not even a former president. Today, the law prevailed,” Heinrich said.
U.S. Reps. Melanie Stansbury (D-NM-01) and Teresa Leger Fernandez (D-NM-03) also weighed in on the verdict.
“He (Trump) can no longer be allowed to con the American people into thinking he is worthy of leading. He never was, and he never will be. Today, the justice system did what it was supposed to do — hold the guilty accountable,” Stansbury said in a press release.
“The jury found that he (Trump) broke the law when he lied about the payments and tried to hide them from the American people. Americans are a moral people. Americans are a people who believe in the rule of law. A criminal court has found that Trump is a felon, a corrupt politician, and not a man of moral integrity,” Leger Fernandez said in a press release.
Republicans across the nation and in New Mexico reacted to the verdict with a combination of sorrow and outrage.
Sharon Clahchischilliage, the Republican challenging Leger Fernandez in the 3rd Congressional district, and Republicans Steve Jones and Louie Sanchez, who are fighting for their party’s nomination to take on Stansbury in November, did not offer public statements on the verdict.
But Nella Domenici, the Republican hoping to oust Heinrich in the fall, said the trial demonstrates how fractured the nation has become. She also claimed the outcome was a product of a justice system used to go after political opponents.
“It is a sad day in our country when Americans see our justice system weaponized. Thankfully, there is an appeals process that can correct miscarriages of justice. We stand at an unprecedented time, with our country growing more and more divided each day. This must end,” Nella Domenici said in a press release.
Former U.S. Rep. Yvette Herrell (R-NM-02), who hopes to win back the congressional seat she narrowly lost to Democrat Gabe Vasquez in 2022, came to the former president’s side.
In her statement, Herrell adopted much of Trump’s language and accusations about the trial, portraying it as an effort to boost the re-election prospects of President Joe Biden, who Trump hopes to defeat in November.
“This case was election interference through and through, designed from the start to take President Trump off the campaign trail and damage his prospects in November. But I’m confident Americans will see through this weaponization of our legal system and vote to get our country back on track by electing Donald Trump,” she said.
Herrell repeated Trump’s claim that “the real verdict” will come on Election Day.
When reached for comment on May 31 by the Roswell Daily Record, Vasquez, in a statement provided by his campaign, slammed Herrell’s response to the verdict.
“Trump was tried by a jury of his peers, and the legal system has prevailed. It’s sad to see Yvette Herrell defend a convicted felon,” Vasquez said.