President Joe Biden was mostly mum on Thursday in response to the historic news that his predecessor is now the first U.S. president to be convicted of a crime.
The White House issued a perfunctory statement to reporters but otherwise avoided the sweeping presidential statement that some hoped Biden would issue once a verdict is reached in former President Donald Trump’s criminal trial in Manhattan.
“We respect the rule of law and have no additional comment,” White House Counsel Office spokesman Ian Sams said in a statement to the White House Press Group.
On the other hand, Biden’s campaign has shown that it may increasingly rely on the reality that one of the two major parties will put forward a convicted felon as its candidate.
“Donald Trump always mistakenly believed that he would never face consequences if he broke the law for his own personal gain,” Michael Tyler, a Biden campaign spokesman, said in a statement. “But today’s verdict does not change the fact that the American people are faced with a simple reality. There is still only one way to keep Donald Trump out of the Oval Office: through the polls. Convicted criminal or not, Trump will be the Republican nominee for president.
Minutes after a Manhattan jury returned 34 guilty charges against Trump, Biden’s campaign posted a fundraising link on X urging people to donate to the incumbent Democrat.
“There is only one way to stop Donald Trump from entering the Oval Office: through the ballot box,” the message said.
The presidential campaign highlighted the increased “threat” Trump poses to American democracy.
“He is waging an increasingly disorderly campaign of revenge and retaliation, pledging to be a dictator ‘from day one’ and calling for our Constitution to be ‘repealed’ so he can regain and retain power “said the spokesperson. “A second Trump term means chaos, destroying Americans’ freedoms and fomenting political violence – and the American people will reject him in November.”
Biden had previously been reluctant to comment directly on Trump’s legal struggles, even though the former president’s criminal indictments have shaped the course of the 2024 race. Politico reported that last year, Biden ordered the The White House, the Democratic National Committee and his re-election campaign have largely avoided commenting on Trump’s legal affairs.
“I’ve been through a long time since the State of the Union. But Donald has had a few rough days lately. You could call it stormy weather,” Biden said at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, one of the president’s rare indirect events. brought to Trump’s trial.
In recent days, Biden’s campaign has signaled that deference to the justice system is changing. The president’s re-election campaign literally took place there, holding a press conference right in front of the Manhattan courthouse. Biden’s campaign asked actor Robert De Niro and two Capitol Police officers to speak to reporters, but none of them directly referenced the historic trial unfolding behind them.
“We’re not here today because of what’s going on there,” Biden campaign communications director Michael Tyler told reporters, according to the Associated Press. “We are here today because you are all here.”
Biden’s campaign also began selling a “Free Wednesday” shirt when the president laid out his plan for the general election debates, referencing the weekly trial day off. Trump was required to be present at his trial, which limited his ability to campaign during the week.
Trump’s legal troubles have overshadowed the 2024 presidential race. Top Republicans began rallying around Trump after the FBI raid at Mar-a-Lago in August 2022 and never really stopped when prosecutors local and federal authorities ultimately unsealed four criminal indictments against him. Trump and his campaign have also embraced his image as a criminal outlaw, selling merchandise with his Fulton County, Georgia, mugshot.
But the general election raises new potential risks for Trump. Polls show voters disagree with Trump’s assertion that the trial is a sham. Voters also responded that they thought Trump did something wrong.
The verdict comes just weeks before Trump and Biden face off in the first major televised presidential debate in history. It’s almost certain that Trump’s legal problems will come back to this.
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