Donald Trump's split-screen campaign: from fraud trials to state fairs, everything's a campaign event
Former President Donald Trump speaks to reporters outside the courtroom during a break in his business fraud trial in Manhattan last week. Credit: AP/Mary Altaffer
WASHINGTON — For three straight days last week Donald Trump stood outside a Manhattan courtroom where he’s on trial for business fraud and railed against a judicial system he accused of trying to damage his status as front-runner in the Republican presidential primaries.
Days later, he hit the campaign trail in Iowa, where he has stepped up his appearances over the past few weeks — flipping burgers at a football tailgate and dishing out pizza at a local pub — as he seeks to lock in a wide lead over other GOP candidates.
Trump's split-screen campaigning — as aggrieved defendant in the New York lawsuit and in criminal cases in New York, Florida, Georgia and Washington D.C., or as retail campaigner in Iowa — offers a preview of what Trump’s campaign for the presidency in 2024 may look like, experts said.
Court appearances have become campaign stops at which Trump airs his grievances against prosecutors and Democrats. And campaign stops have become open mics for Trump to try and win over voters in small early caucus and primary states such as Iowa and New Hampshire, where small-scale appearances are effective.
Trump's appearances in state court in Manhattan last week were about, “campaigning as much as … tending to his legal fate,” Trump biographer Michael D’Antonio said.
D’Antonio, who has published two books about Trump, and interviewed the real estate mogul on several occasions before he was elected president 2016, said Trump likely is ramping up public appearances, whether in court in Manhattan or on the stump in Iowa, to widen his lead in the primary and caucus races for the GOP nomination.
“I don't think he wants anybody to get close to him,” D’Antonio said. “If he clobbers the field in Iowa. it could help him score another victory in New Hampshire, and by March, almost everyone else will probably drop out.”
Trump has denied all the allegations and charges against him in federal and state courts.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and business owner Vivek Ramaswamy are among those who remain in the race, but they all are polling way behind Trump.
Trump leads the pack of GOP primary candidates by an average of 45 percentage points, according to the most recent analysis conducted by the poll tracking site Real Clear Politics. But a potential rematch with Democratic President Joe Biden, who beat Trump in 2020, is much tighter, with most recent polls showing both candidates within surveys' margin of error.
Trump has twice turned down the opportunity to appear on the GOP debate stage with the other candidates, and last week his campaign called on the Republican National Committee to cancel a debate scheduled for Nov. 8 in Miami along with “all future debates in order to refocus its manpower and money.”
Trump also inserted himself into another headline grabbing event last week by endorsing staunch ally Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) over Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) in the race for Speaker of the House after the ouster of Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) from the top leadership post.
The former president also continues to blitz Iowa with appearances before the state GOP caucuses on Jan. 15 — Martin Luther King Day — the first nominating contest of the primary season.
Unlike his 2016 and 2020 presidential campaigns, in which Trump stuck primarily to big events in airport hangars and arenas, his recent Iowa visits have begun to favor more of the retail politics he eschewed in his past campaigns. He recently signed autographs at a pub, attended a college football tailgating event and met with a small group of farmers.
Trump likely is stepping up his appearances in Iowa to avoid a repeat of the result of the crowded 2016 GOP caucuses, which Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) won with a stronger ground game than the other candidates, University of Iowa political science Professor Tim Hagle said.
“Trump is both upping his ground game but also trying to do a few of the things that we normally expect in a caucus campaign,” Hagle said, noting Trump’s appearances at the Iowa State Fair and Iowa vs. Iowa State football game this summer.
Hagle said despite Trump’s appearances at the fair, he nonetheless bypassed the traditional speaking engagements open to candidates such as Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds’ “Fair-side Chats” event and the Des Moines Register’s Political Soapbox. Instead, Trump opted for viral moments such as flying over the fairgrounds in his Trump branded private plane.
“He wants to do things, but not the things that the other candidates are doing, because he doesn’t want to be seen as having to actually compete with them,” Hagle said.
Megan Goldberg, a political science professor at Cornell College in Mount Vernon, Iowa, said while Trump continues to hold large-scale rallies, they often don’t generate as much attention on social media and in news media coverage as the smaller events. Given Trump’s time constraints in dealing with his legal challenges it is likely easier for his campaign to schedule these “small retail style appearances,” that tend to go viral on social media, Goldberg said.
“It's something new and we're obviously paying attention,” Goldberg said. “I think that for someone who really prides himself on being able to dominate the news cycle, and in ways relies on being able to dominate the news cycle, this is a strategy that catches people’s attention.”
WASHINGTON — For three straight days last week Donald Trump stood outside a Manhattan courtroom where he’s on trial for business fraud and railed against a judicial system he accused of trying to damage his status as front-runner in the Republican presidential primaries.
Days later, he hit the campaign trail in Iowa, where he has stepped up his appearances over the past few weeks — flipping burgers at a football tailgate and dishing out pizza at a local pub — as he seeks to lock in a wide lead over other GOP candidates.
Trump's split-screen campaigning — as aggrieved defendant in the New York lawsuit and in criminal cases in New York, Florida, Georgia and Washington D.C., or as retail campaigner in Iowa — offers a preview of what Trump’s campaign for the presidency in 2024 may look like, experts said.
Court appearances as campaign stops
Court appearances have become campaign stops at which Trump airs his grievances against prosecutors and Democrats. And campaign stops have become open mics for Trump to try and win over voters in small early caucus and primary states such as Iowa and New Hampshire, where small-scale appearances are effective.
WHAT TO KNOW
- Donald Trump stood last week outside a Manhattan courtroom where he’s on trial for fraud and railed against a judicial system he said was trying to block him from becoming president.
- Then he hit the trail in Iowa, seeking to lock in a wide lead over other GOP presidential candidates.
- For Trump, court appearances have become campaign stops, and Iowa campaign events have become open mics for him to try to win over voters at small events.
Trump's appearances in state court in Manhattan last week were about, “campaigning as much as … tending to his legal fate,” Trump biographer Michael D’Antonio said.
D’Antonio, who has published two books about Trump, and interviewed the real estate mogul on several occasions before he was elected president 2016, said Trump likely is ramping up public appearances, whether in court in Manhattan or on the stump in Iowa, to widen his lead in the primary and caucus races for the GOP nomination.
“I don't think he wants anybody to get close to him,” D’Antonio said. “If he clobbers the field in Iowa. it could help him score another victory in New Hampshire, and by March, almost everyone else will probably drop out.”
Trump has denied all the allegations and charges against him in federal and state courts.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and business owner Vivek Ramaswamy are among those who remain in the race, but they all are polling way behind Trump.
Trump leads the pack of GOP primary candidates by an average of 45 percentage points, according to the most recent analysis conducted by the poll tracking site Real Clear Politics. But a potential rematch with Democratic President Joe Biden, who beat Trump in 2020, is much tighter, with most recent polls showing both candidates within surveys' margin of error.
Trump has twice turned down the opportunity to appear on the GOP debate stage with the other candidates, and last week his campaign called on the Republican National Committee to cancel a debate scheduled for Nov. 8 in Miami along with “all future debates in order to refocus its manpower and money.”
Trump also inserted himself into another headline grabbing event last week by endorsing staunch ally Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) over Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) in the race for Speaker of the House after the ouster of Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) from the top leadership post.
The former president also continues to blitz Iowa with appearances before the state GOP caucuses on Jan. 15 — Martin Luther King Day — the first nominating contest of the primary season.
New focus on small events
Unlike his 2016 and 2020 presidential campaigns, in which Trump stuck primarily to big events in airport hangars and arenas, his recent Iowa visits have begun to favor more of the retail politics he eschewed in his past campaigns. He recently signed autographs at a pub, attended a college football tailgating event and met with a small group of farmers.
Trump likely is stepping up his appearances in Iowa to avoid a repeat of the result of the crowded 2016 GOP caucuses, which Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) won with a stronger ground game than the other candidates, University of Iowa political science Professor Tim Hagle said.
“Trump is both upping his ground game but also trying to do a few of the things that we normally expect in a caucus campaign,” Hagle said, noting Trump’s appearances at the Iowa State Fair and Iowa vs. Iowa State football game this summer.
Hagle said despite Trump’s appearances at the fair, he nonetheless bypassed the traditional speaking engagements open to candidates such as Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds’ “Fair-side Chats” event and the Des Moines Register’s Political Soapbox. Instead, Trump opted for viral moments such as flying over the fairgrounds in his Trump branded private plane.
“He wants to do things, but not the things that the other candidates are doing, because he doesn’t want to be seen as having to actually compete with them,” Hagle said.
Megan Goldberg, a political science professor at Cornell College in Mount Vernon, Iowa, said while Trump continues to hold large-scale rallies, they often don’t generate as much attention on social media and in news media coverage as the smaller events. Given Trump’s time constraints in dealing with his legal challenges it is likely easier for his campaign to schedule these “small retail style appearances,” that tend to go viral on social media, Goldberg said.
“It's something new and we're obviously paying attention,” Goldberg said. “I think that for someone who really prides himself on being able to dominate the news cycle, and in ways relies on being able to dominate the news cycle, this is a strategy that catches people’s attention.”
Laura Figueroa Hernandez is the White House correspondent and previously covered New York City politics and government. She joined Newsday in 2012 after covering state and local politics for The Miami Herald.
Navigating politics over Thanksgiving and where to get holiday pies. Here's a look at some of the exclusive stories you may have missed this week on NewsdayTV.
Navigating politics over Thanksgiving and where to get holiday pies. Here's a look at some of the exclusive stories you may have missed this week on NewsdayTV.
