Shortly after former President Donald J. Trump was convicted on Thursday, he delivered remarks in the courtroom hallway, insisting that the true verdict would come at the polls in November and repeating a number of inaccurate assertions about the case.
WHAT WAS SAID
“This was done by the Biden administration in order to wound or hurt an opponent, a political opponent.”
This lacks evidence. Mr. Trump and his campaign have offered no proof for this accusation. President Biden has publicly emphasized the independence of the Justice Department, which has no control over locally elected prosecutors. The hush money case also predated Mr. Biden’s presidency, as the inquiry began in 2018.
WHAT WAS SAID
“This was a rigged decision, right from Day 1, with a conflicted judge who should have never been allowed to try this case.”
This is exaggerated. Justice Merchan’s daughter has worked on Democratic campaigns, but experts in judicial ethics and the New York State Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics said that her work was not sufficient grounds for recusal.
WHAT WAS SAID
“You have a Soros-backed D.A., and the whole thing — we didn’t do a thing wrong.”
This is exaggerated. Mr. Trump again overstated the ties of Alvin L. Bragg, the Manhattan district attorney bringing the case against him in describing him as a “Soros-backed D.A.”
A financial link does exist between Mr. Bragg and George Soros, a billionaire and Democratic megadonor. But Mr. Soros’s support was not explicitly earmarked for Mr. Bragg, and a spokesman for Mr. Soros previously told The New York Times that the two men had never met, nor had Mr. Soros directly given money to Mr. Bragg’s campaign.
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