Chris Hayes Reacts to GOP Voters Saying Federal Conviction Would Make Them Support Trump More: ‘There’s Just Nothing’ Disqualifying

Chris Hayes aired a stunning focus group conducted for PBS Newshour last week featuring Iowa Republican voters saying they would be more likely to support Donald Trump if he is criminally convicted.

Trump was indicted in federal court on 37 counts this month. The Department of Justice says he willfully took classified documents with him when he left office and obstructed the government’s efforts to recover them. He pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Despite the indictment, Trump maintains a hammerlock on the Republican presidential primary field.

On Tuesday’s All In on MSNBC, Hayes said when some Republican voters see Trump in legal trouble, for them it simply means he is being unfairly persecuted.

“This is their reaction to the indictment,” he said. “Take a listen.”

“So, let’s say Trump is found guilty of these charges,” focus group leader Sarah Longwell says to eight GOP voters in the clip. “He goes through the courts and they find him guilty. Raise your hand if it makes you support him more.”

Five voters raised their hands.

“Raise your hand if it makes you support him less,” she said. No one raised a hand.

“So, the idea there being that there’s just nothing,” Hayes said, suggesting no amount of unflattering developments could cut into Trump’s support among the GOP base. The host then noted just 33% of voters overall have a favorable view of Trump.

“That seems like a not-great number to launch a candidate into a general election,” he said.

Watch above via MSNBC.