Joe Biden on Friday defended the conviction of former President Donald Trump and claimed it was “reckless” for his gagged political opponent to call it “rigged.”

Trump called the trial a “scam” and vowed to appeal the guilty verdict.

About two hours after Trump spoke, Biden directly mentioned Trump by name in a carefully crafted press conference. “The American principle that no one is above the law was reaffirmed,” Biden claimed. “Donald Trump was given every opportunity to defend himself.”

Biden pointed out that Trump’s lawyers chose the jury in Manhattan — a location from which Trump tried to move the case. The Manhatten jury pool more often than not leaned politically left, New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman said during jury selection.

“The jury heard five weeks of evidence, five weeks. After careful deliberation, the jury reached a unanimous verdict,” Biden said, speaking slowly. “They found Donald Trump guilty on all 34 felony counts.

“The justice system should be respected, and we should never allow anyone to tear it down. It’s as simple as that. That’s America. That’s who we are. That’s who we’ll always be, God willing,” Biden claimed.

Trump’s campaign raised $34.8 million from small-dollar donors after a Manhattan jury found him guilty on Thursday, the Trump campaign announced Friday morning. Small-dollar donations are significant because donors can give again and again.

“This can’t be allowed to happen to other presidents; it should never be allowed to happen in the future,” Trump said Friday. “But this is far beyond me. This is bigger than Trump. This is bigger than me.”

“Make America great again,” Trump said. “Remember November 5.”