Despite having his victory in the 2024 presidential election certified on Monday, the incoming president is still required to face sentencing in his criminal hush money case on Friday, as Trump was found guilty of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records last year. In assessing this, Smith argued this is only fueling “suspicion” among the public that the justice system was weaponized, an argument that many conservatives made ahead of the election.

TRUMP SENTENCING: A BS CONCLUSION TO A BS CASE

“What is the purpose of this?!” Smith asked on his show, The Stephen A. Smith Show. “Is he going to jail? Is he going to jail? We gotta sit up there and go through all the pomp and circumstance when you know you’re not going to do anything!”

Smith further vented criticism over Judge Juan Merchan continuing the sentencing over the hush money case, which involved Trump using “efforts involving finances” with porn star Stormy Daniels. Smith noted he had spoken to others who asked what the difference was between Trump and Daniels’s interaction and someone signing a nondisclosure agreement, to which he said, “I don’t know the answers to these questions.”

As such, Smith argued the purpose of continuing the sentencing is still a mystery, stating it will not prevent Trump from becoming president or passing any laws.

“But you’ve got some folks, and of course, they’ll say stuff about the judge, they’ll say it was politicized, and all you’re doing is giving them fodder and adding to the point, and that is what annoys me,” Smith said.

Last month, Smith and commentator NewsNation anchor Chris Cuomo were discussing President Joe Biden’s sweeping pardon that he granted to his son, Hunter Biden, when Cuomo pitched the possibility of Joe Biden issuing a similar pardon to Trump. In response, Smith argued this was “exactly what I would do” in order to allow the United States to “move forward.”

On Tuesday, Justice Ellen Gesmer of the state Appellate Division denied the Trump legal team’s bid to delay his sentencing in the hush money case. Trump’s team had claimed that the sentencing would disrupt the presidential transition and violate Trump’s constitutional rights.