Donald Trump arrives at Trump Tower in New York on May 30, 2024, after being found guilty on 34 felony counts.Stephanie Keith/Getty Images Karrin Vasby Anderson, Colorado State University After a jury convicted Donald Trump of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to cover up a politically damaging relationship, he responded by warning viewers of his post-verdict news conference: “If they can do this to me, they can do this to anyone.” That statement simultaneously invokes the ideal of an independent judiciary and attempts to delegitimize it. As a scholar of political communication, …
