White House Refusing to Comment on Trump Indictments to Avoid ‘Overstep’ on DOJ Independence

White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary Olivia Dalton speaks during the daily press briefing at the White House in Washington on June 27, 2023. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

White House Principle Deputy Press Secretary Olivia Dalton told reporters the White House was holding back from commenting on former President Donald Trump’s latest indictment, his fourth, as it has with previous charges against him.

President Joe Biden ran on promises to “restore democracy,” and Ms. Dalton reiterated that platform as an explanation as to why the White House has not spoken about the 45th president’s indictments coming from his administration’s Department of Justice (DOJ).

“You’ve heard the president speak on a number of occasions about ... the soul of our nation, making sure that we’re protecting our foundations of our democracy. But you’ve also heard this president, even before he was in office, talk about the importance of restoring the independence of the DOJ,” Ms. Dalton said.

“And so, you know, we have to hold both of those things and with respect to the cases that are underway with respect to ongoing criminal cases, that’s certainly why we’ve continued to observe the independence of the DOJ to respect that and make sure that we don’t overstep here.”

President Trump is facing trial in New York over accusations that he falsified business records, in Florida for allegedly mishandling classified documents, in Washington for alleged conspiracy to defraud citizens in the 2020 presidential elections, and, added Monday, in Georgia for alleged interference in the state’s 2020 general election.

Former President Donald Trump leaves the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines, Iowa, on Aug. 12, 2023. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

He and his supporters have continued to question why charges related to the 2020 elections are only now being brought by the DOJ and others during an election cycle in which Trump is the GOP frontrunner by a significant margin, alleging election interference from his political rival President Biden.

In spite of the legal challenges, President Trump’s polling has improved, as he frequently notes with numbers on his social media, and the last few indictments have also boosted his fundraising.

All four cases elicited strong partisan reactions. Supporters of President Trump have joined him in calling the investigations and trials election interference and a “witch hunt” while detractors call the charges lawful and a victory for “our democracy.”

“After losing the free and fair 2020 election, the failed former president attempted to disenfranchise Georgia voters because he didn’t like the result. That was an assault on our democracy. But in Fulton County we apply the law equally to everyone–even failed former presidents,” posted Rep. Nikema Williams (D-Ga.), whose district includes most of Atlanta, on X.

“President Biden and the Democrats are ABUSING the justice system and have weaponized it against Donald Trump,” posted Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) on X. “They are trying to take the power away from the voters.”

Biden Avoids Trump

While President Biden, who has been running on an economic platform he calls “Bidenomics,” has been open to attacking his rival’s policies, he has stayed quiet on the legal issues and has recently avoided face time with reporters.

After President Trump’s third indictment, President Biden’s campaign spokesman, Kevin Munoz, said in a statement that, “like every Republican running for president, Donald Trump is running on an extreme, unpopular agenda.”

“As we saw in the midterms and continue to see in down-ballot races in 2023, Americans reject the agenda Donald Trump embodies. President Biden will continue to campaign for our freedoms, for our middle class, and for our democracy − these are the issues Americans outside the beltway continue to head to the ballot box on.”

Last month Mr. Munoz criticized the former president for failing to bring a promised manufacturing boom to Wisconsin.

“One year from today, Republicans will be wrapping up their convention in Wisconsin, just miles away from where former President Trump promised his ‘America First’ agenda would bring 13,000 manufacturing jobs and a new Foxconn plant to the state,” he told Politico. “The former president has yet to go back to Wisconsin since announcing his campaign, nor has he provided an explanation for his failure to deliver on his promised American manufacturing boom.”

Democrats are aware that President Biden commenting on the GOP frontrunner could create negative optics.

“He’s just going to want to, and should, steer pretty far clear of anything that relates to the ongoing legal proceedings,” Kristy Parker, counsel for Protect Democracy and a former federal prosecutor, told USA Today.

President Biden and the White House have also avoided answering questions about his son Hunter Biden, who is facing investigations and a trial of his own, but the White House has ruled out pardoning the younger Biden.