WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden’s campaign appeared Tuesday in front of former President Donald Trump’s New York City home hush money criminal trial with actor Robert De Niro and two former police officers in an effort to refocus the presidential race January 6, 2021, US Capitol insurrection.
It was a sharp turnaround for Biden’s team, which has largely ignored the trial since it began six weeks ago and is now seeking to capitalize his final moments full of dramasending the “Goodfellas” actor and first responders who were at the Capitol on January 6th. A top Biden adviser said they were not there to talk about the trial, but rather to explore the mainstream media’s focus on the court proceedings.
“We’re not here today because of what’s going on there,” Biden campaign communications director Michael Tyler told reporters, pointing toward the courthouse. “We are here today because you are all here.”
The New York trial is the first of four Trump criminal trials, likely the only one before the November election. There are two others directly related to the Republican’s efforts to undo his 2020 loss to Biden: a federal case in Washington is related to his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, and a state case in Georgia accuses him of electoral interference. He has pleaded not guilty in those cases.
Biden’s campaign last week released a new ad narrated by De Niro harshly criticizing Trump’s presidency and plans if he is re-elected.
“I don’t want to scare you. No, wait, maybe I want to scare you,” De Niro told reporters. “If Trump returns to the White House, you can kiss goodbye to these freedoms we all take for granted.”
The actor portrayed himself as a real New Yorker and mocked Trump’s history of sometimes unsuccessful business ventures and self-promotion, saying Trump was trying to “destroy” the city.
“We New Yorkers used to tolerate him when he was just another crappy real estate hustler masquerading as a big shot,” De Niro said. “I love this city. the city, but the country, and eventually he could destroy the world.”
Former Washington, D.C. police officer Michael Fanone and former Capitol Police officer Harry Dunn spoke about their personal experiences on January 6, with Fanone describing his injuries suffered at the hands of the crowd of Trump supporters seeking to suspend Congress’ certification of Biden’s 2020 presidential victory.
“I came here today to remind Americans of what Donald Trump is capable of and the violence he unleashed on all Americans on January 6, 2021,” Fanone said.
The two former officers were also witnesses during a congressional investigation into the Jan. 6, 2021, riot. Hundreds of law enforcement officers were beaten and bloodied in the attack by Trump supporters, who descended after a rally and stormed the Capitol as Trump remained silent for hours.
“Americans need to wake up. This is not a drill,” said Harry Dunn, a former Capitol Police officer who ran unsuccessfully for public office in Maryland.
“We cannot count on these institutions to stop Donald Trump,” he added. “It will take us Americans to get to the polls to defeat him once and for all.”
Trump’s aides held their own press conference following the Democrats’ conclusion, with adviser Jason Miller suggesting that the presence of Biden’s team validated Trump’s claim that his criminal matters were “all political.”
“If you don’t think this is politics, why did the Democrats launch a retread like Robert De Niro,” he said.
This story originally appeared on Time.com read the full story
