Biden campaign releases ad attacking Trump's felony convictions
After holding back for weeks, the president’s reelection campaign took aim at the former president’s historic guilty conviction in the hush money case.
After holding back for weeks, President Biden’s reelection campaign released a new television ad Monday attacking former President Donald Trump over his historic felony conviction in May in his New York hush money trial.
🎥 What does the ad say?
The 30-second spot, titled “Character Matters,” begins with a black-and-white image of Trump taking his seat inside the Manhattan criminal courtroom where a New York jury found him guilty of all 34 charges stemming from his efforts to conceal a hush money payment to porn actress Stormy Daniels on the eve of the 2016 presidential election.
“In the courtroom we see Donald Trump for who he is,” a voice-over says before reminding viewers of the hush money conviction as well as the Trump Organization’s conviction in a tax fraud case and how the former president was found liable for sexual assault in E. Jean Carroll’s lawsuit.
“Meanwhile, Joe Biden's been working, lowering health care costs and making big corporations pay their fair share,” the voice-over continues, adding: “This election is between a convicted criminal who's only out for himself and a president who's fighting for your family.”
🔊 What does the Biden campaign say?
“The ad makes clear that Trump’s status as a convicted felon isn’t just a label,” the campaign said in a press release. “It’s a reflection of a spiraling and unhinged man who will do anything for power, revenge, and retribution.”
The spot is part of a broader $50 million ad campaign the Biden team is rolling out ahead of the presidential debate on June 27 in Atlanta.
“Trump approaches the first debate as a convicted felon who continues to prove that he will do anything and harm anyone if it means more power and vengeance for Donald Trump,” Michael Tyler, a spokesman for the Biden-Harris campaign, said in a statement. “The president of the United States should be someone who understands that the highest office in the land is about you and your family — not a vehicle to enrich yourself. That is the ethos Joe Biden puts into the job every day: to fight for safer communities, for the middle class, and to ensure that corporations are paying their fair share. It’s a stark contrast.”
🥊 What was the Trump campaign’s response?
Trump campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said in a post on X that the Biden administration had “weaponized the justice system” against Trump, and that the contrast between the former president’s “strength and success” and “Joe Biden’s weakness, failures, and dishonesty will be made clear on the debate stage next week.”
🗳️ What do the polls say?
Ahead of the hush money trial, some independent voters who supported Trump said they would be less likely to vote for the former president if he was convicted of a crime. And a new poll conducted by Politico following Trump’s conviction found that 21% of independent voters said it made them less likely to vote for him in November.
🇺🇲 What’s next?
Trump is scheduled to be sentenced on July 11. He is facing up to four years in prison for each of the 34 felony counts, though legal experts say he would probably serve each sentence concurrently — meaning he is likely facing a maximum prison sentence of four years — and as a first-time offender is likely to receive far less jail time, if any.
Meanwhile, President Biden’s son Hunter was convicted in federal court in Delaware earlier this month of three felony charges for lying about his drug addiction while purchasing a gun in 2018. He is facing up to 25 years in prison at sentencing, a date for which has yet to be set.
