Asa Hutchinson, the former governor of Arkansas and a 2024 Republican presidential candidate, warned fellow members of his party not to take "lightly" Donald Trump's conviction of 34 felony counts related to hush money payments to a former porn star before the 2016 election.
"You had 12 jurors who, from all appearances, really devoted themselves to seeking the truth in this case, and all 12 of them unanimously said on 34 counts Donald Trump is guilty. I don't think that should be lightly dismissed," Hutchinson said in an interview Friday on "NewsNation Now."
He said Trump's conviction could have serious implications for the upcoming election.
"You can challenge the judge's jury instructions, it could obviously be reversed on appeal, but don't diminish what the jury found after hearing weeks of testimony. And that's the major point," he said.
"This is a serious moment for the United States of America. No one should be gleeful about a conviction of a former president," Hutchinson added.
A Manhattan criminal court jury on Thursday found the former president guilty of falsifying business records in an effort to cover up a $130,000 payment to silence Stormy Daniels' allegations that she had a sexual relationship with Trump in 2006.
Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, at a news conference on Friday reiterated his baseless claims that President Joe Biden "rigged" the case against him.
His Republican allies have also slammed the conviction, with GOP Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert calling it a "sham verdict."
Hutchison cautioned Republicans to be "very concerned" with the way they talk about the verdict against Trump.
"Republicans should be very concerned that we have a presumptive nominee that has now been convicted of serious felony charges. And so that's the message that I think's important," the former governor said. "We ought to be careful about how we address this."
