04 June 2024 , 07:31
425
0
President Joe Biden has claimed that “convicted felon” Trump is trying to run again for President to "preserve his freedoms."
Speaking at a fundraiser in Greenwich, Connecticut, Biden said the former president “wants you to believe it’s all rigged. Nothing could be further from the truth.” He told potential supporters: “Something snapped in him when he lost in 2020. He can’t accept he lost and it is literally driving him crazy.”
Trump, who is likely set to become the Republican presidential nominee, was convicted on 34 counts related to a scheme during his 2016 presidential campaign to pay off adult film actress Stormy Daniels, who said the two had sex. The former president slammed the verdict as politically motivated, and has blamed it on Biden — while seeking to make himself a political martyr in the eyes of supporters, suggesting that if this could happen to him, similar things might happen to them.
Read more: Biden will 'let surrogates crow' about Trump conviction to avoid attention on son Hunter
Crowds gather in front of Trump Tower prior to a press conference by former President Donald Trump (Getty Images)Biden's fundraiser speech marks the first time the incumbent has said the words "convicted felon" in a speech to describe his political rival, despite his campaign team having used it several times since the guilty verdict. Speaking to donors at the home of former HBO CEO Richard Plepler, Biden said: "For the first time in American history a former president that is a convicted felon is now seeking the office of the presidency."
Gangsters ‘call for ceasefire’ after deadly Christmas Eve pub shooting
He went on to say that Trump is "clearly unhinged", before claiming: "Now after his criminal convictions it’s clear he’s worried about preserving his freedoms." Echoing comments he made in reaction to the verdict at the White House last week, Biden said: “It’s reckless and dangerous and downright irresponsible for anyone to say that it’s rigged just because you don’t like the verdict.”
Former US President Donald Trump, left, and Todd Blanche, his attorney (Bloomberg via Getty Images)Biden noted that Trump’s was a state case rather than a federal one, was heard by a jury chosen the same way all juries nationwide are chosen, and featured five weeks of evidence. He said the verdict was unanimous and Trump can appeal. But Biden went further Monday, accusing Trump of equating the justice system and elections. He said the former president was “attacking both the judiciary and elections system as rigged.”
“Nothing could be more dangerous for the country, more dangerous for American democracy,” Biden said. Trump has used the conviction to rake in millions in campaign donations, claiming they took nearly $53 million in donations in the 24 hours after Thursday’s verdict.
Biden has monopolised on Trump's conviction (Getty Images)Trump has continued to claim the charges against him and the court case was a scam. His campaign advisers Chris LaCivita and Susie Wiles said in a statement: “We are moved by the outpouring of support for President Donald J. Trump. The American people saw right through Crooked Joe Biden's rigged trial, and sent Biden and Democrats a powerful message – the REAL verdict will come on November 5th."
The president made no mention of the federal gun case against his son, Hunter, which began Monday in Delaware. Jason Miller, a senior adviser for the Trump campaign, seized on that, responding to Biden’s comments by asserting that the president “will do anything to distract from Hunter’s trial.”