Speaking during a Friday, January 3 appearance on Fox News Channel, former Republican South Carolina Rep. Trey Gowdy argued that really there is a big “silver lining” for President-elect Donald Trump in the updated sentencing schedule ordered by Judge Juan Merchan. That sentencing is now set to occur on January 10, just days before the inauguration.
In his ruling, Judge Merchan said, in part, “[T]his Court recognizes the importance of considering and balancing the seemingly competing factors before it: ensuring that the Executive Branch is free to fully dispense the duties of the President and safeguard the interests of the Nation, unencumbered by pending criminal proceedings; to ensure that the Supreme Court’s ruling and the citizenry’s expectation be honored that all are equal and no one is above the law; and the importance of protecting the sanctity of a jury verdict.” He added, “This Court is simply not persuaded that the first factor outweighs the others at this stage of the proceeding, either on its own or in conjunction with the other Clayton factors.”
In any case, appearing on FNC’s “Special Report With Bret Baier,” former Rep. Gowdy was asked about Judge Merchan’s decision. Responding, he recounted his experience in the courtroom during the trial that led to the sentencing, explaining in the process of that recollection what the silver lining for the president is.
Gowdy said, commenting on Judge Merchan’s obvious bias in favor of the prosecution team, and his resultant bias against Trump, said, “I’ve been in a lot of courtrooms. I’ve had bad judges and good judges, but at least they were the same for both sides. This judge, I’ve never seen anything like it, Bret. I mean, the strike zone was like the size of a gnat’s cotton ball for the defense, but it was a big strike zone for the prosecution. So I’m not surprised that he would take one more shot.”
That’s when the former congressman got to describing the “silver lining” in the ruling for the president-elect, saying, “Here’s the silver lining though. Now that the case will be over, the sentencing is what ends his involvement, then he can perfect his appeal, President Trump. He can appeal all the evidentiary issues.”
Continuing, Mr. Gowdy said. “I get the unfairness that I’m sure he feels right now, and it was an unfair trial. You stop and think of the issues going on in New York right now, and you’re going to take time to prosecute a bookkeeping error. So I get the unfairness, but, in the long run, he, I think, is better off having this in the rear view mirror than in the windshield, despite the unfairness [from] Juan Merchan.”
Baier then asked Gowdy for more details, and he responded by saying, “You have to have a sentencing before you can appeal trial errors. We would have been in a state of limbo had he sentenced him after his term ended in 2029. This way he can perfect his appeals. If he wins on appeal, he also can make this a political issue in the midterms. I mean, I think one of the reasons he was elected is people are tired of the Alvin Braggs of the world. You have people being set on fire in New York, and you’re going to tell your prosecutors to go pursue a bookkeeping error?”
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Continuing, Gowdy then went on to note, “It’s going to be a political issue in the midterm. So I get, nobody wants to be a convicted felon except some hip hop stars. The rest of us don’t want to be, but if you’re going to be one, be one now and don’t have it hanging over your head while you’re serving as president.”
Watch him here: