A Democratic congressman called on New York Governor Kathy Hochul to pardon former President Donald Trump.
Rep. Dean Phillips said in a social media post that a conviction for Trump only helped boost his campaign.
Phillips then asked New York Governor Kathy Hochul to pardon the former president for “the good of the country.”
Trump was found guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records in his hush money trial earlier this week.
In a post on himself as a victim.”
“Governor Kathy Hochul should pardon him for the good of the country.”
Rep. Dean Phillips, seen here, said in a social media post that a conviction for Trump only helped boost his campaign.
Phillips asked Governor Kathy Hochul to do it ‘for the good of the country’
Trump walks to speak to the media after being found guilty following his hush money trial in Manhattan Criminal Court on May 30, 2024.
Twelve hours after his original post asking for forgiveness, for which he was widely criticized, Phillips added: “Do you think forgiveness is stupid?
‘Turning him into a martyr for a payment to a porn star is stupid. (Electoral positions are completely different).
“It is energizing his base, generating record amounts of campaign money and will likely result in an electoral boost.”
A person close to Hochul told him the New York Post tthat a pardon for Trump was “unlikely,” adding: “I can’t imagine a world where she would consider doing this, this makes no sense.”
Phillips gained national attention earlier this year after he launched a primary challenge against President Biden for the 2024 Democratic presidential nomination.
The Minnesota legislator and heir to one of the largest liquor dynasties in the United States suspended his campaign after a disastrous Super Tuesday.
Speaking outside court on Thursday, Trump said: “This was a disgrace, this was a rigged trial by a conflicted judge.”
“The real verdict will be on November 5th by the people and they know what happened here, and everyone knows what happened here.”
A person close to Hochul told the New York Post that a pardon for Trump was “unlikely.”
JL Partners surveyed 403 likely voters immediately following Thursday’s guilty verdict to assess its impact on the November election. Results suggest slight increase for Trump
The verdict comes after five weeks of dramatic evidence and 22 witnesses questioned on the stand.
The charges Trump was convicted of carry a potential maximum sentence of up to four years in prison.
According to an exclusive DailyMail.com poll following the guilty verdict in Manhattan, Trump’s favorability ratings had increased.
Of those who said the verdict had changed their view of Trump, 22 percent said they now rated him more favorably compared to 16 percent who said they viewed him more negatively.
That six-point net positive is another sign of the way the businessman-turned-politician appears capable of weathering crises that would sink anyone else.
In particular, the numbers show a four-point net positive impact among independent voters, the group that could decide who will be the next president in November.
At the same time, Trump’s campaign said it had enjoyed a fundraising bonanza in the hours after the verdict, raising $34.8 million from small donors, nearly double its record daily haul.
