In recent years Republican leaders and their supporters have disparaged prosecutors, judges, and jurors involved in cases in which former president Trump has been a target or defendant.  Yesterday, following Trump’s conviction, political leaders including Rep. Mike Johnson, Sen. Mike Lee, Sen. Tim Scott, and Sen. Ted Cruz, some of whom are lawyers or have had legal educations, and many others, claimed the trial and system are and were “rigged.” 

These individuals have taken an oath to uphold the Constitution, which provides guidelines for criminal prosecutions and safeguards for criminal defendants.  But instead of honoring their obligations, in an effort to undermine the rule of law, they have falsely alleged, with no evidence, and with systems in place that prevent political prosecutions, that this and other prosecutions were directed by President Biden, and results were due to politics.  These claims are false. These politicians know:

Grand jurors are ordinary citizens;

Grand jurors were the ones who decided whether there was sufficient proof to bring charges in each case;

Evidence was presented to grand juries;

At trial, prosecutors have to present evidence;

Jurors are ordinary citizens, and the jurors in this trial were selected by attorneys for both sides;

The jurors heard the evidence;

The jurors had to be unanimous to convict;

The jurors had to conclude there was proof beyond a reasonable doubt;

With those constitutional requirements applied, jurors deliberated for two days;

The verdict was rendered and each individual juror stated in court that that was their verdict.

The repeated false claims about a rigged system are doing harm to our democracy, our judicial system, and the judges, prosecutors, and jurors working so hard within it.  These claims are doing damage to the rule of law, and making citizens question whether the foundations of our government are reliable.  Frighteningly, these asertions may lead to violence against judges, prosecutors, and ordinary citizens serving as jurors who, in meeting their civic obligations, should never face the types of slanderous and libelous claims made by these Republican politicians.  Jury duty is difficult, but one of the greatest civic obligations we all share.  It is blind to wealth and political party.

We, the undersigned, confemn these false claims and efforts to undermine and destroy our institutions made by political leaders.  We call on Sen. Cruz, Sen. Lee, Sen. Scott, Rep. Johnson, and all other politicians and media personalities to immediately cease and desist from making these false claims, and retract the false statements they have already made.