Trump's attacks on justice system could be useful to Putin, autocrats

Donald Trump attacked the U.S. criminal justice system after his historic guilty verdict. He made unfounded claims of a “rigged” trial that echoed remarks from the Kremlin. Former senior White House national security adviser Fiona Hill and other analysts say Trump’s attacks could be useful to Russian President Vladimir Putin and other autocrats. Those leaders hope to boost their standing among their own citizens, potentially sway the upcoming U.S. presidential election in which Trump is the presumptive Republican nominee, and undermine the United States’ global influence. Moscow agreed with Trump’s assessment of Thursday’s verdict. A Kremlin spokesman called it the “elimination of political rivals by all possible legal or illegal means.”