Angry speech in New York

Trump complains about too little “compassion” after verdict

Trump feels like the "victim" of a "show trial".

(Bild: AP ( via APA) Austria Presse Agentur/Julia Nikhinson)

Donald Trump vented his anger at a press conference at Trump Tower in New York. In a 40-minute angry speech, the former US president lashed out at the historic verdict. Trump stylized himself as a victim - and complained about a lack of "compassion" despite a veritable shower of money.

The day after his conviction, former US President Donald Trump described himself as the victim of a "rigged trial". He announced his intention to appeal. In front of a wall of American national flags, Trump questioned the legitimacy of the verdict. "These are very bad people," the 77-year-old declared.

The sentence has not yet been determined; the judge intends to announce it in July. Irrespective of this, it seems clear to Trump that his person would be dealt with far too harshly - also because of his age.

A round of pity
Trump is 77 years old, he would normally call someone like that an "old guy", excluding himself of course. "My goodness, I feel sorry for this man!" are nevertheless sentences that the Republican would like to hear. He misses this kind of affection. Trump added: "Maybe I'm better off this way", as he had always described himself as the "fitter" candidate in the previous election campaign.

The scene described for review:

However, the de facto presidential candidate is receiving sympathy from elsewhere. The Kremlin has assessed the historic New York guilty verdict against Trump as evidence of persecution of political opponents by the White House. "The fact that a de facto elimination of political rivals is taking place there by all available legal and illegal means is obvious," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists in Moscow on Friday.

Historic verdict

• On Thursday, Trump became the first ex-president in US history to be found guilty in a criminal trial.
• The jury in New York found the 77-year-old guilty on all 34 charges.
• His sentence is to be announced on July 11; a fine or suspended sentence is considered likely.

Immediately after the verdict, Trump's team asked supporters for donations. "I am a political prisoner", was the message in an email and on the Republican politician's donation website. The donation website then collapsed on Thursday. In his speech on Friday, Trump stated that payments amounting to 39 million US dollars (equivalent to 35.95 million euros) had nevertheless been received since then. The majority came from small donors. Trump spoke of a record.

The campaign team of US President Joe Biden described his opponent as a "convicted felon". After Trump's speech on Friday, the communications director of Biden's campaign and Vice President Kamala Harris, Michael Tyler, spoke of a "confused and desperate" performance by the ex-president. "This man cannot be president of the United States," he added.

Rant as an all-round attack
Trump also used his 40-minute tirade for election campaigning. He railed against migrants, called Joe Biden "the dumbest president we've ever had" and described the USA as a "corrupt country". He did not appear very stringent, often jumping from one thought to another. A common thread was often not recognizable. 

In the trial, Trump was accused of trying to improve his chances of success in the 2016 presidential election by paying 130,000 dollars (the equivalent of around 120,000 euros) in hush money to porn actress Stormy Daniels and then unlawfully accounting for the cash flow. Daniels had testified in the proceedings that she had sex with him in Trump's hotel suite at Lake Tahoe in 2006. The now 77-year-old denies this.