Donald Trump indicted: White House defends Biden’s silence on election-focused indictments
Naomi Lim
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The White House is keeping its distance from the Justice Department‘s prosecutions of former President Donald Trump‘s efforts to overturn the 2020 election while underscoring President Joe Biden‘s message regarding the importance of protecting democracy.
White House deputy press secretary Olivia Dalton was asked about the dynamic after Trump was indicted by special counsel Jack Smith and Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis over his conduct last cycle amid the 2024 Republican presidential primary.
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“You’ve heard the president speak on a number of occasions about empowering the soul of our nation and making sure that we’re protecting our foundations of our democracy,” she told reporters Tuesday aboard Air Force One en route to Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
“But you’ve also heard this president, even before he was in office, talk about the importance of restoring the independence of the DOJ,” she said. “And so we have to hold both of those things.”
Dalton referred reporters to local authorities in Georgia concerning questions about Willis’s decision to indict Trump and 18 co-defendants overnight under the state’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. Trump himself faces 13 charges, including infringing the RICO law, soliciting a public official to violate an oath, and filing false documents.
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Dalton additionally defended Biden’s ability to raise awareness about his record before next year’s election, despite Trump’s dominance of media coverage.
“You all will make your editorial decisions, but this president will stay focused on delivering for the American people,” she said. “That is his job, and that is his priority.”