WASHINGTON – Donald Trump’s supporters may not be gathering in New York City to protest his hush-money trial, but they are still watching the former president pursue an unprecedented presidential campaign from the depths of a criminal trial. It’s not that I stopped it.
In impromptu campaign events, statements to reporters, television and radio interviews, and social media posts, Trump has criticized judges, prosecutors, the trial itself, and even President Joe Biden as much as he has. He is busy promoting his election campaign. Critic.
President Trump spoke to reporters before Congress on Tuesday to send a message to his supporters in Pennsylvania, at least those watching online and on cable TV, ahead of the fall general election. I asked them to vote in the primary election. We’ll be back on November 5th…we’re coming big. ”
Currently on trial on charges of concealing hush money payments intended to improperly influence the 2016 election campaign, Trump’s political appeals are largely focused on key groups, including those who would turn away from him if convicted. It is aimed at independents and moderate Republicans who say they can be targeted.
“We’re going to end up doing very well,” President Trump said last week during a staged campaign-like stop at a Harlem wine farm.
Preparing to vote: See who’s running for president and compare their positions on important issues with our voter guide
Same tactics, different elections
Longtime Trump watchers told USA TODAY that the former president is using the same type of tactics after he was indicted on four separate indictments, starting with hush money charges in late March of last year.
Trump has complained about the legal moves against him, as he did last year after his four indictments, and has nonetheless held mock campaign events to promote his presidential candidacy.
The charges include Trump’s efforts to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss to Biden and his handling of classified documents, as Trump gains momentum in the Republican primary. It seems that it was helpful. However, this phenomenon was largely limited to conservative Republican voters.
Moderate Republicans and independents have taken the charges seriously, expressed concern about Trump’s actions, and are unlikely to be swayed by Trump’s campaign-style protests.
“What worked for him in the primary could hurt him in the general election,” said Doug Sosnick, a Democratic political strategist and senior adviser to former President Bill Clinton.
“What President Trump is doing will have a negative impact on unstable voters,” she warned.
According to a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll, about 13% of people who said they would vote for Trump said they would not vote if he were a convicted felon.
The poll also found that 24% of all Republicans surveyed said they would not vote for Trump if he was convicted, enough to sway the outcome of the general election. The numbers are too high.
“If Trump were to lose a quarter of the Republican base, that would be huge,” said Chris Jackson, senior vice president of communications at Ipsos. “Even if he only loses 10% of his bases, that’s huge.”
But Jackson added that the Trump and Biden campaigns are staying in the dark about how the trial will affect voters. No former president or major party candidate has been tried in an election year.
“This is completely new territory for this country,” he said. “So you never know how it’s going to turn out.”
Trump’s hush money trial in New York could take another six to seven weeks for a verdict, potentially moving the needle on a marathon trial for some voters as the November general election approaches There is. It is unclear whether Trump will go to trial in 2024 in the other three criminal cases in which he has maintained his innocence.
So far, the political race between Trump and Biden has been a close one. The average Real Clear Politics poll has Mr. Trump leading by 0.2 percentage points, which is within the margin of error for these polls.
Campaign during trial period
It’s unclear whether Trump’s approach will resonate with voters, but he did spend the first week of jury selection previewing his “campaign within the courts.”
After court ended last Tuesday, Trump’s motorcade took him to a warehouse in Harlem, where he spoke to reporters about Biden, crime and House Speaker Mike Johnson’s spending plans, and frequently complained about the trial.
As he has done since the first indictment, Trump blamed Biden and Democrats for the criminal charges without evidence, saying, “They’re trying to keep me out of the campaign,” and calling for political influence. expressed concern.
President Trump has also attacked judges and prosecutors in the hush money case, and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg is seeking sanctions against the former president for violating the gag order.
The former president organized several campaigns within the court. Last week, for example, he met with Polish President Andrzej Duda. President Trump welcomed Duda’s arrival at Trump Tower and told reporters, “We will always support Poland.”
President Trump held another roundtable discussion on foreign policy on Tuesday night at Skyscraper in Manhattan with Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party Vice President and former Prime Minister Taro Aso.
some plans failed
Not everything went according to plan.
Small groups of demonstrators occasionally gather outside the Manhattan courthouse where Trump is being tried. Even they were overshadowed by the horrific events of last Friday, when a man attempted to self-immolate in full view of news cameras outside the venue.
President Trump had also planned a traditional airport rally in Wilmington, North Carolina, a key battleground state, on Saturday, but had to be canceled due to inclement weather.
The event will likely be rescheduled.
Looking ahead, the Trump campaign has already scheduled a May 11 rally in Wildwood, New Jersey, not far from the New York trial venue.
In various conversations with reporters, Trump has complained that he should be campaigning in states like New Hampshire, Georgia and North Carolina, but instead has to sit on the court.
Trump’s campaign continued in the same vein last Friday, calling for fundraisers and complaining that “people are being taken to court so often that they are being removed from the campaign.” Explosives were sent via text asking supporters to donate up to $3,300 each.
“Rally behind MAGA”
President Trump has also encouraged people to appear in person in court on his behalf. As of now, it’s not working.
Before Monday’s arguments began, President Trump took to his Truth Social account to criticize Israeli Hamas protesters and urge his supporters to “come out and protest peacefully.” ” and “Don’t give in to MAGA, let’s unite.”
In a brief statement Tuesday before trial testimony resumed, President Trump lamented the relative lack of supporters in the court. He blamed the heavy police presence as anti-Israel protesters flocked to the nearby Columbia University and New York University campuses.
Video outside the courthouse showed only a modest police presence and nothing to prevent people from coming to the area.
Political commentators are mocking President Trump over the no-show.
MSNBC host Joe Scarborough said President Trump is “insane” and has “more supporters than people holding up signs talking about porn stars or life in prison.” ” he added.
Biden: President Trump is ‘busy’ now
Mr. Biden and his aides are not ignoring Mr. Trump’s trial. However, following the political rule of not interfering with those who are causing problems themselves, they do not say much about it.
Instead, they jokingly refer to President Trump’s travails.
“Under his predecessor, he’s busy right now,” Biden said at one point in a speech to steelworkers in Pittsburgh last week.
The Biden campaign memo’s headline mocks Trump for “stormy anti-abortion coverage,” a reference to former adult film star Stormy Daniels, a key witness in the trial, and her relationship with Biden. He is the person who received hush money in order to obtain hush money. 2016 Election.
On Tuesday, as he left a Manhattan courthouse after a day of witness testimony, President Trump complained about the room temperature and also went on to discuss how his time is no longer his own. Method. “
Trump and Biden are expected to continue campaigning over the former president’s trial. He faces three other criminal cases.
These include lawsuits in both Washington, D.C. and Georgia alleging a Trump-led conspiracy to steal the 2020 election from Biden. The fourth case concerns Trump’s handling of classified documents in Florida after he leaves office.
But even if Biden continues to bash Trump over the criminal charges, and Trump continues to protest them, there won’t be much of a difference among voters who instead want their leaders to answer about the challenges facing the American people. Maybe that’s what you’re looking for.
Jackson said Trump may have to contend with a different kind of reaction from voters, one that may explain why so few protesters showed up for him. No, he said, it’s “fatigue.”
“The data suggests that Americans are kind of exhausted,” Jackson said. “I think everyone’s a little tired.”
