Rep. Eric Burlison wasn’t expected back in Congress until Tuesday. His wife and kids were flying to visit family.

So on a Sunday night, he took a late flight from Missouri to New York City, arrived after midnight, donned his navy suit and red tie so he could stand behind President Donald Trump as he stands trial over whether the former president illegally concealed hush money payments to salvage his 2016 presidential bid.

“I wanted to go there because it is an historic moment and also, I wanted to show moral support to a guy that deserves it,” Burlison told The Star. “I mean, look, a lot of people who have my same political view, a lot of conservatives see him as their fighter.”

“He’s the one taking the punches for us,” he said.

Burlison, who represents the area around Springfield, was the first Missourian in Congress to make the trip. The next day, Sen. Eric Schmitt made the trip – also wearing a navy suit and red tie – and caught the end of the testimony for the final witness in the case.

They joined the daily drumbeat of Republican politicians and Trump hangers-on who have traveled to New York to join the former president in court – and then stand behind him as he speaks to reporters when he leaves the courtroom.

Many Republicans appear eager to put their work aside to support the leader of their party. House Speaker Mike Johnson and potential Trump vice presidential picks like Sens. J.D. Vance and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum have all made the pilgrimage – a demonstration of the party’s unwavering commitment to Trump despite a litany of felony charges.

While Trump could potentially face four felony trials – a case in Georgia about election interference, a case in Washington about election interference and a case in Florida about his refusal to hand over classified documents to the National Archives – the trial in New York may be the only one before Election Day.

Schmitt was willing to miss two Senate votes Tuesday during his few hours in New York – both related to the confirmation of a U.S. District Court judge in Arizona. His absence, coupled with Sen. Josh Hawley’s absence due to an illness – meant that Missouri had no representation in those votes.

“I felt compelled to go, to show him some support,” Schmitt said. “And then also, as a former prosecutor, Attorney General, I just think the lawfare is very dangerous. So I wanted to go and see it myself and be a witness.”

Burlison poured himself a cup of coffee and admitted he was tired the morning after the trip. His train from New York to Washington was also delayed – marking two late nights in a row – and he was at the office early.

Still, he insisted it was worth it to support the former president.

“It’s a brutal day,” Burlison said. “He’s being held in these very old, dark, damp rooms. They basically put them in prison each day from the beginning of the day until the day is done. And they dictate when he has to be there when he can go home.”

By many accounts, Trump has been treated better than most defendants in a similar position. He was allowed a pause in the trial to attend his son’s high school graduation, and the judge has held off jailing him for contempt of court, despite multiple violations of a gag order on him.

Before he went to see Trump, Burlison was speaking to a group in southwestern Missouri called the Southwest Missouri Patriots.

He said they asked him to tell the president ‘we love him, we’re praying for him, and we got his back.’”

“I specifically said that to him,” Burlison said. “I said, ‘Mr. President, people in southwest Missouri love you, they pray for you and they they want you to know that they’ve got your back.’”

Burlison said he does not believe that Trump did anything wrong, claiming all the cases brought against the former president are driven by partisan politics. When it was pointed out that a jury would decide whether the claims against Trump were valid, Burlison said he didn’t think a jury would vote to convict.

“I wouldn’t put it past a jury out of New York to be absolutely insane,” Burlison said.

Schmitt said the courtroom was a dingy space – it’s a more than 80 year old building. He sat in the first row and attempted to watch the jury, to see how they were reacting to the testimony of Robert Costello, an attorney and former federal prosecutor.

He, too, criticized the trial as politically motivated.

“As somebody who cares about our legal system, I think this is very dangerous and it’s like a show trial to me. And so speaking out about it, I thought it was a good opportunity to do that.”

While serving as Missouri Attorney General, Schmitt helped build his reputation by launching political lawsuits – during his campaign for Senate, Schmitt said it was his job to wake up and sue President Joe Biden.

As to what was with the red ties – nearly every male Republican who’s shown up at the trial has worn a red tie – Schmitt claimed he didn’t coordinate.

“There was no memo on that,” Schmitt said. “I just happened to grab a red tie, although much has been made about red ties these days. But my wife thinks I look good in the red tie.”