President Joe Biden openly criticized his opponent on Tuesday as he began a series of engagements in Pennsylvania, a key battleground. Biden criticized Trump's tax plan for billionaires and Social Security comments from Scranton. He made fun of Trump's finances. Trump was branded “Donald Herbert Hoover Trump” for saying bleach could fight COVID-19 and increasing the federal debt.
Biden ignored the lowest-hanging fruit: that Trump was in a New York City courtroom, the first president or past president to face criminal charges. As exciting as the trial's start has been and as sordid as Trump's case—paying off a porn star to avoid political reprisal—Biden continued his longstanding pattern of not discussing Trump's legal issues. Even during a criminal trial, Biden doesn't discuss Trump's indictments, though he has nibbled around the edges.
Biden's campaign was relishing memes from the trial, accusing Trump of nodding out. This Thursday, it released “After Stormy Abortion Ban Coverage, Trump Poll Memo Attempts to Hush Panic.” It used porn star Stormy Daniels and "hush money," the common term for Trump's claims, to represent the harsh criticism he encountered after last week's Arizona Supreme Court decision that allowed a near-total abortion ban in the state.
The campaign enjoyed calling Trump “Sleepy Don,” a play on his moniker for Biden, “Sleepy Joe.” Beyond that, the campaign, like Biden, avoided discussing the claims. The White House followed suit. After being asked if Biden was informed or monitoring Trump's judicial proceedings, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre spelled out Biden's Pennsylvania schedule.
Criticizing Trump's indictments is risky for Biden. Trump has repeatedly accused Biden of pursuing him and compared his court proceedings to election involvement. Celebrating Trump's criminal charges may support that narrative.
Biden campaign officials claimed recent allusions to Daniels were creative ways to spread abortion awareness. The person said hitting on Trump for falling asleep was consistent with the campaign's emphasis of Trump's gaffes and was too good to pass up.
Donald Trump's court appearances in recent days have caused turmoil. He intimidates jurors. The judge chastises him. He's ranting on social media "Weathersby pointed to the split screen with Biden, who was campaigning and setting out his policy. “He’s working now. He looks presidential.”
He related a story about being approached by someone who complained about not feeling the economy's benefits, which got the fans laughing and clapping. He was making fun of Trump.
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