Mike Johnson acts as proxy for ‘friend’ Trump as he bashes judge’s daughter and ‘sham trial’ outside court

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson vocally defended former president Donald Trump outside the New York City courthouse where the former president’s criminal trial was taking place.

Mr Johnson said he was speaking out in defence of his “friend,” the former president, and decried the “sham” trial.

“ I wanted to be here myself, to call out what is a travesty of justice,” Mr Johnson told reporters. “President Trump is a friend and I wanted to be here to support him.”

The Louisiana Republican is an ally of Mr Trump who led House Republicans’ legal efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results and assumed the gavel in October of last year.

Mr Johnson spoke to reporters shortly after Michael Cohen, Mr Trump’s former attorney and fixer who made the $130,000 hush money payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels at the heart of the case, began his testimony. Mr Cohen reportedly made the payment to keep Ms Daniels silent about a sexual encounter with Mr Trump in 2006, which the former president has denied.

“I just listened to a few moments of his testimony this morning and it is consistent with what he's already done,” Mr Johnson said and alluded to the fact Mr Cohen previously pleaded guilty to lying in federal court and lying to Congress.

“This is a man who is clearly on a mission for personal revenge, and who is widely known as a witness who has trouble with the truth,” Mr Johnson. “He lied to Congress. He lied to the IRS. He lied to federal election officials. Even Cohen's own lawyer testified to a grand jury that he is not reliable. So, there's nothing that he presents here that should be given any weight at all by a jury and certainly not this judge.”

Despite his reputation as a devout Christian, Mr