Trump Returns To Campaign Trail In Arizona, Blasts Conviction And Appeals For Overturn

Donald Trump, in his first appearance in a battleground state since his conviction in a hush-money case, reiterated his claims that the case against him is politically motivated.

The former president resumed his campaign efforts on Thursday with a visit to Arizona, where he called for his conviction to be overturned on appeal, reported the Associated Press.

At a town hall event in Phoenix organized by Turning Point, a conservative youth organization, Trump said: "Those appellate courts have to step up and straighten things out or we're not going to have a country anymore."

He plans to appeal the conviction on all 34 charges related to his New York hush money trial, in which he was found guilty of illegally influencing the 2016 election through payments to a porn actor.

Trump responded defiantly to the verdict, condemning the case as "fake" and politically driven. The Phoenix event was the former president's first direct address to swing-state voters since the conviction.

At the rally, Trump also took aim at Biden for the latter's recent executive action on immigration, pledging to scrap it when he comes to power. The centerpiece of Biden's new policy is a rule limiting the number of migrants allowed to claim asylum between ports of entry. The new measures are designed to show his administration's commitment to border security.

"Biden's order is not a border security plan," Trump said at the rally, adding, "It's a concession to the fact that he has lost control over a border. And it's a really dangerous place. On day one of my administration, I will be rescinding crooked Joe's outrageous executive order."

The former president also took to his social media platform to criticize a federal judge's decision to order his longtime ally Steve Bannon to report to prison. He called for the indictment of members of the House panel that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, riot, labeling their actions as a "Total and Complete American Tragedy."

He also expressed outrage over Peter Navarro, another former aide, being ordered to prison for refusing to comply with the congressional investigation.

Trump said on Truth Social that the House panel members had committed crimes by allegedly deleting and destroying material evidence, intensifying his accusations against those who have prosecuted or investigated him and his allies.

"The unAmerican Weaponization of our Law Enforcement has reached levels of Illegality never thought possible before," Trump wrote in a post. "INDICT THE UNSELECT J6 COMMITTEE FOR ILLEGALLY DELETING AND DESTROYING ALL OF THEIR 'FINDINGS!'"

A federal judge Thursday ordered Bannon to start his four-month prison sentence in July, as he was convicted of contempt of Congress after refusing to comply with a subpoena from the House panel investigating the Capitol riot. He plans to appeal his conviction.

Navarro also attempted to avoid prison through emergency relief from the Supreme Court, which was unsuccessful.