Speaker Mike Johnson on Friday urged the Supreme Court to intervene in former President Donald J. Trump’s appeal of his felony conviction, by overturning the decision and granting him immunity from prosecution.
“I do believe the Supreme Court should step in,” Mr. Johnson told Fox News during an interview the morning after Mr. Trump became the first former president to be convicted of any crime. “Obviously, this is totally unprecedented.”
Mr. Trump was convicted of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records after a Manhattan jury considered allegations that he participated in a scheme to pay hush money to a porn star to cover up an affair before the 2016 presidential election.
Speaking on Fox, Mr. Johnson said he knew some of the justices on the Supreme Court personally and believed that they shared his view that Mr. Trump was a victim of unfair and politically motivated prosecutions. He also suggested that the legal system was biased against Mr. Trump and other conservatives.
“So I think they’ll set this straight,” Mr. Johnson said, “but it’s going to take a while.”
He added later: “I think this court will do the right thing, because they see the abuse of the system right now.”
Mr. Johnson has long been a steadfast supporter of Mr. Trump. After Mr. Trump lost the 2020 election, Mr. Johnson played a leading role in recruiting House Republicans to sign a legal brief supporting a lawsuit seeking to overturn the results.
The Supreme Court ultimately rejected the suit, but not before Mr. Johnson persuaded more than 60 percent of House Republicans to sign onto the effort. He did so by telling them that the initiative had been personally blessed by Mr. Trump, and that the former president was “anxiously awaiting” to see who in Congress would defend him.
Since becoming speaker, Mr. Johnson has traveled to Mar-a-Lago, Mr. Trump’s private club and residence in Florida, to hold a joint news conference with him. Mr. Johnson also visited him in New York during his criminal trial to show loyalty and support and condemn the proceedings.
In the interview on Fox, Mr. Johnson also boasted about the National Republican Campaign Committee’s fund-raising numbers, which he said were the highest since he won the gavel last fall.
“There’s good reason to be motivated,” Mr. Johnson said of Republican base voters. “This entire thing is absurd.
Looking to capitalize on base outrage about the conviction, Mr. Johnson said House Republicans set up a new website — supportDJT.com — where G.O.P. donors could send them money to help defend Mr. Trump.
“We broke records on our fund-raising platforms last night,” Mr. Johnson said. “We’ll continue to do that.”
