President Joe Biden’s campaign made an appearance on Tuesday at the New York City criminal hush money trial of former President Donald Trump. Actor Robert De Niro and two former police officers joined the campaign in an effort to shift the focus of the presidential race towards Trump’s involvement in the January 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol insurrection.
Biden’s team had previously shown little interest in the trial, but now they have changed their stance. They see an opportunity to benefit from the trial’s gripping conclusion. To make an impact, they have enlisted the help of the actor from “Goodfellas” and the first responders who were present at the Capitol on January 6th. Initially, Biden’s campaign was hesitant to get involved, as they didn’t want to play into Trump’s narrative of politically motivated prosecutions. However, they eventually decided to engage because they felt that their message about the high stakes of the election was being overshadowed by the trial’s intense scrutiny.
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During a press conference, a top Biden adviser made it clear that their purpose was not to discuss the trial at hand. Instead, the adviser emphasized that the presence of De Niro and the officers was a strategic move to take advantage of the extensive media coverage surrounding the legal proceedings. Although the speakers did not directly address the controversial criminal case, Trump advisers saw this as an opportunity to reinforce the former president’s argument that his prosecutions are politically motivated.
As closing arguments unfolded in the courtroom, two press conferences took place simultaneously, serving as a sideshow to the main event. This trial, one of three directly linked to Trump’s attempts to overturn his 2020 election defeat against Biden, is the only one expected to conclude before the November election. In Washington, a federal case is focused on his efforts to invalidate the 2020 election results, while in Georgia, he faces allegations of election interference. Trump has entered a plea of not guilty in both cases. The final case involves accusations that he purposefully retained classified documents after leaving office.
The Biden campaign recently unveiled a new ad, narrated by De Niro, which strongly criticizes Trump’s presidency and his plans if he were to be reelected. De Niro explained his decision to join the campaign, stating that it was the only way to safeguard our freedoms.
“I don’t want to alarm you. Well, actually, maybe I do want to alarm you,” De Niro expressed to reporters. “If Trump is re-elected and goes back to the White House, it’s highly likely that we will lose the freedoms we’ve always had and taken for granted.”
In his portrayal, the actor positioned himself as a genuine New Yorker and openly ridiculed Trump’s track record of occasionally unsuccessful business endeavors and self-promotion. He asserted that Trump had intentions to “ruin” the city.
“We New Yorkers used to put up with him when he was just another mediocre real estate hustler pretending to be important,” De Niro mentioned. “I have a deep affection for this city. I don’t want to see it ruined. Donald Trump, on the other hand, seems determined to not only ruin the city but also the entire country, and potentially even the world.”
Former Washington, D.C., police officer Michael Fanone and former Capitol police officer Harry Dunn shared their firsthand accounts of the events that took place on January 6th. Fanone recounted the injuries he endured as he was attacked by a mob of Trump supporters who aimed to disrupt the certification of Biden’s 2020 presidential win by Congress.
“Americans must awaken from their slumber. This is not a mere exercise,” expressed Dunn, a former Capitol police officer and unsuccessful political candidate from Maryland.
“We can’t rely on these institutions to stop Donald Trump,” he emphasized. “It will be up to us, the American people, to defeat him once and for all at the ballot box.”
Even though Trump and his aides criticize the trial as politically motivated, they have been actively utilizing the proceedings to further his presidential campaign. Trump has seized the opportunity to raise funds, and when appearing in front of cameras outside the courtroom, he has taken the chance to criticize Biden and highlight a multitude of his own political supporters.
