Todd Blanche says he was shocked Donald Trump took the verdict with 'solemness'

NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump’s lawyer told The Associated Press he was surprised at Trump’s stoic demeanor as he listened to the verdict that made him the first former U.S. president convicted of a crime. Todd Blanche was sitting to Trump’s left in the Manhattan courtroom as the verdict was read — the jury foreman repeating the word “guilty” 34 times.

“I was shocked at how he took the verdict,” Blanche said. “He just stood there and just kind of took it. And I think had a lot of appropriate solemnness for the moment that made me very proud to be sitting next to him when it, when it was happening,” said Blanche, adding that he thought Trump was still handling himself well on Friday, the day after the verdict, even as the presumptive Republican presidential nominee railed that the trial was unfair.

“He’s not happy about it, but there’s no defendant in the history of our justice system who’s happy about a conviction the day after. But I think he knows there’s a lot of fight left and there’s a lot of opportunity to fix this and that’s what we’re going to try to do,” said Blanche, Trump’s lead attorney in the New York case and his classified documents federal criminal case in Florida.