Joe Biden’s debate performance ignited calls for him to drop his presidential bid, and former President Donald Trump’s campaign team is looking to keep the attention on the president.
Not even before the conclusion of Thursday night’s debate, Trump’s team sent out a text message stating how the former president “obliterated” Biden on the debate floor.
At a rally in Raleigh, North Carolina, a day after the debate, Trump reiterated how apparent Biden’s mental decline was during the event.
A poll conducted after the debate found that 72% of people said Biden lacked the mental and cognitive health to serve as president, and only 21% of people said Biden presented his ideas clearly.
The next few weeks may be difficult to keep Biden’s debate performance in the spotlight since Trump faces legal proceedings and must soon decide on a vice presidential pick.
Partial immunity decision
On Monday, the Supreme Court issued its ruling that Trump was granted some immunity regarding the former president’s actions surrounding claims of election interference. The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that Trump was granted protection for his actions carried out in an official capacity. However, the court found he was not immune from prosecution for any unofficial acts he took in office.
The decision nullified parts of the indictments filed against Trump by special counsel Jack Smith, but questions about what he said to the crowd during a speech on Jan. 6, 2021, and in subsequent posts online, were remanded back to a lower court.
Trump claimed the ruling as a win for his fight against Smith, though it isn’t clear how the justices will rule should specific questions about Trump’s conduct appear before them again.
“This case poses a question of lasting significance,” according to a summary of the decision that signaled some of the justices were not considering Trump’s actions in particular. “When may a former President be prosecuted for official acts taken during his Presidency? In answering that question, unlike the political branches and the public at large, the Court cannot afford to fixate exclusively, or even primarily, on present exigencies.”
The Supreme Court’s ruling, while it benefits Trump, once again returns to the spotlight allegations of Trump’s attempts to undermine democracy.
Hush money sentencing
In less than two weeks, on July 11, Trump will be sentenced after being found guilty in New York for falsifying business records to hide hush money payments to porn star Stormy Daniels. Trump faces the possibility of jail time.
The initial guilty verdict was historic for its status as the first time a former president had been found guilty of a felony and for the kickstart it provided for Trump’s campaign. In the days after the decision, Trump’s team reportedly raised more than $50 million, erasing the huge cash advantage Biden had held over him for most of the cycle.
While the verdict opened up a new line of attack for Biden, who quickly circulated campaign material referring to Trump as a “convicted felon,” the weeks of trial-related media coverage faded with the buzz about Trump’s fundraising boom and the prospect of a head-to-head matchup between the two candidates.
With the debate in the rearview mirror, how Judge Juan Merchan determines Trump should be punished is poised to dominate headlines, reminding voters about one of the several legal entanglements the former president finds himself in.
Veepstakes intrigue
Just four days after Trump is sentenced, he will be in Milwaukee for the Republican National Convention. Before being certified as the Republican Party’s presidential nominee, Trump must make his pick for vice president.
For months, Trump’s top contenders for his pick as vice president have been under the spotlight, and Democrats have gone on offense to tamp down excitement for each of the rumored nominees.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Buzz around each of the eight front-runners has, in spurts, dominated headlines as the contenders jockey for position and voters try to discern who might make the cut to be Trump’s right-hand man — or woman.
For the next weeks, media attention will be shifted once again onto Trump’s legal struggles, thus taking some heat off of Biden.
