Mike Johnson Says (Comically Corrupt) Supreme Court Should Overturn Trump’s Conviction for the Good of the Republic

Welcome back to Barf Bag. 

Following Thursday’s jury verdict that former President Donald Trump is guilty of all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in order to influence the 2016 election, MAGA world is not okay and is acting like the man died. But, for his part, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) is appealing to a higher power: The 6-3 conservative supermajority on the Supreme Court.

There is a world where SCOTUS could get involved: Trump plans to appeal the ruling, related to New York state charges for covering up a hush-money payment to adult film actor and director Stormy Daniels, and the appeals process would have to go through the state Supreme Court before reaching the Justices in Washington, D.C. During a Friday morning appearance on Fox and Friends, Johnson acted pretty confident that the U.S. Supreme Court would eventually overturn the verdict and revealed that he’s friendly with a bunch of them??

“I do believe the Supreme Court should step in, obviously, this is totally unprecedented and it’s dangerous to our system,” Johnson said. He added that the charges and verdict were “diminishing people’s faith in the system of justice itself,” and that, in order for our country to survive, people have to believe equal justice under the law is possible. “I think that the Justices on the court—I know many of them personally—I think they are deeply concerned about that, as we are. So I think they’ll set this straight.”

Interesting! I think a lot of Americans believe the main culprit responsible for the lack of faith in our legal system is the Supreme Court itself. After Trump put three far-right Justices on the court, it gutted gun control laws and overturned the federal right to abortion based on ridiculous legal theories that a modern court has to follow the words and intent of some 19th-century white men. And then there’s the multiple ethics scandals including justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito accepting luxury trips from billionaires who have business before the court. I doubt that the court stepping in to overturn charges brought by local prosecutors and a verdict rendered by a jury of Trump’s peers would help the situation.

And, the revelation that Johnson knows several Justices personally makes me wonder if it was him who gave Alito and Martha-Ann that Christian Nationalist “Appeal to Heaven” flag.

Anyway, Mike, you’re so close to getting the cause of the confidence crisis here.

• Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts said he would not meet with top Democrats about Alito’s flag scandals, so that means Dems will have to—gasp—take their own action. Televised hearings sound correct. [NPR]
• Racist goblin and former Trump administration staffer Stephen Miller’s law firm lost a federal anti-DEI lawsuit, but they plan to appeal. [Axios]
• We may not be rid of Joe Manchin yet. [New York Times]
• A producer of The Apprentice, whose NDA recently expired, said Trump called a Black contestant the N-word in 2004. This is gross, but even more gross: A lot of his voters probably love it. [Slate]
• A consumer watchdog group says puppy killer and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) threatened them when they tried to serve her papers in a lawsuit for promoting a Texas dentist who worked on her big ugly teeth. [Politico]
• Trump is reportedly considering making aggrieved billionaire edgelord Elon Musk an advisor if he wins a second term. [WSJ]
• Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry (R) signed a law that would make it a crime to get within 25 feet of a police officer making an arrest or doing other official duties. It doesn’t mention filming but it could have the effect of limiting bystander cellphone video. [Associated Press]
• A New York City hospital fired a Palestinian-American nurse after she correctly referred to Israel’s war in Gaza as a genocide while accepting an award— the hospital was honoring her for caring for women who’d lost their babies. [Associated Press]
• After former Washington Police Officer Michael Fanone criticized Trump outside a Manhattan courthouse on Tuesday, some psychos targeted his 78-year-old mother in a “swatting” attempt. [NBC News]

This has been your weekly Barf Bag, thanks for reading!