Biden campaign changes tack when it comes to Trump’s trial

After months of either ignoring or poking fun at former President Donald Trump’s criminal trial, the Biden campaign on Tuesday adopted a dramatic shift in approach, deciding to stage a news conference outside the courthouse where closing arguments were taking place.

After months of either ignoring or poking fun at former President Donald Trump’s criminal trial, the Biden campaign on Tuesday adopted a dramatic shift in approach, deciding to stage a news conference outside the courthouse where closing arguments were taking place. The feisty event, which featured a surprise appearance from actor-turned-campaign-surrogate Robert De Niro, was not specifically intended to discuss aspects of the trial, the president’s team insisted. But it was undoubtedly meant to draw attention to the criminal defendant inside the nearby building. “If Trump returns to the White House, you can kiss these freedoms goodbye that we all take for granted,” De Niro said, with chanting protesters and a car alarm blaring in the background. “And elections — forget about it, that’s all. That’s done, if he gets in, I can tell you right now — he will never leave. He will never leave.” Previously, Biden’s team had been wary of doing or saying anything that might appear to politicize the former president’s trial. In their view, Trump’s trial would speak for itself, reintroducing the former president and the chaos that surrounds him to voters who may have tuned him out. Some of Biden’s allies had questioned that notion, however, suggesting Trump had already done plenty to politicize his legal issues and that Biden — if he wanted to capture voters’ attention — would be wise to weigh in as well. Tuesday’s event amounted to a nod to the second approach.