After venting that trial is keeping him from the campaign trail, Trump campaigns in NYC
Former President Donald Trump went campaigning in Manhattan Tuesday evening after complaining that his criminal trial there is keeping him off the campaign trail.
After the day's court proceedings, in which roughly a half dozen jurors were selected to hear the case against him, Trump ventured to the Blue Moon bodega where he held court in a rally-like atmosphere. Joined by members of a local shopkeepers organization, he took questions from reporters as a crowd of supporters chanted "We love Trump!"
"We're going to make a heavy play for New York, that's why I am here," Trump said, claiming that he is especially courting minority voters, and added: "They want to keep me off the campaign trail, but based on what I am doing, I think there is more press here than if I went to a nice location."
Previous coverage: Trump angry he may miss son Barron's graduation, campaign events. Then announces NC rally.
Poll has bad news for Trump as respondents say allegations of wrongdoing 'serious'
The visit, however, followed the release of a poll that spells potentially bad news for the 2024 presumptive Republican presidential nominee.
A Yahoo News and YouGov survey released Tuesday reported 57% of those asked said they believe the nature of the charges in the New York case related to falsifying business records are "serious." It was the highest number to say so since Yahoo News and YouGov began asking.
Meanwhile, the survey also found that 73%, also a new high, answered that “conspiring to overturn the results of a presidential election,” the basis of the federal case in Washington and the state case in Georgia against Trump, also amounts to a serious crime. And 69% agreed that “attempting to obstruct the certification of a presidential election” is a grave matter.
And an equal number — 69% — also said the substance of the criminal case in South Florida, “taking highly classified documents from the White House and obstructing efforts to retrieve them,” is a serious offense.
Trump repeats dystopian stump claims about immigration, crime outside bodega
In a street side press conference with members of the Bodega and Small Business Group, Trump decried "tremendous" crime in New York City and said police officers have to be "allowed to do their job" and be given back their authority.
"You know where the crime is? In the bodegas where they come and rob them every week, or more than that," he said.
But New York City Police Department officials reported "continued declines across most major crime categories prevailed" at the start of 2024, with "substantial drops in murder, rape, burglary, and felony assault."
Trump also claimed undocumented immigrants are taking jobs from Latino, Black and union workers. But national business organizations and other advocacy groups have said the availability of jobs has far outpaced the pool of available workers and has helped fuel sharp increases in labor costs that have aggravated inflation and the spiraling cost of goods and services.
Nonetheless, Trump shifted his stumping tactic to working a New York City neighborhood on Tuesday.
"It makes me campaign locally," he said. "We're coming into New York, we're making a big play for New York. Other cities, too, but I love this city."
Antonio Fins is a politics and business editor at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach him at afins@pbpost.com. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Trump campaigns in New York after venting trial won't let him campaign
