Donald Trump was very active on Tuesday as his 2020 rival Joe Biden delivered his second State of the Union speech from Capitol Hill.
The former president (and current 2024 candidate) attempted to capture headlines and public attention with a long thread of live commentary meant to accompany his political foe’s address. Few saw it, however, as the former president remains inactive on Twitter after being unbanned by Elon Musk.
“Having a hard time getting the words out, even though the Fake News will credit him with one of the Great Speeches of all time. I really want to see him improve. Come one Joe, you can do it!” he wrote in one Truth Social post.
But that was far from the extent of the ex-president’s attempts to hug the spotlight on Tuesday. While Mr Biden spoke, his 2024 campaign released a flurry of press releases — eight in total — touting various accomplishments and goings-on of the Trump presidency.
Mr Trump also attacked Mr Biden and his campaign for supposedly coordinating with social media companies to censor conservatives — though there’s no evidence that’s true, beyond some instances where the Biden campaign sought to have explicit images of the president’s son removed from Twitter.
Mr Trump launched his 2024 campaign for president last year, despite a wave of criminal investigations targeting him and his closest advisers. His company, the Trump Organization, also was recently found guilty of tax fraud.
His attacks aimed at Joe Biden Tuesday evening came as he took his most gratuitous swipe yet at Ron DeSantis, his presumed top rival for the GOP nomination.
The former president faces a GOP establishment more hostile than ever to his attempts to retain dominance over the party, and saw his supporters’ attack on the US Capitol once again condemned on the national stage Tuesday by his successor.
Mr Trump remains largely holed up in Florida as he plots a third presidential campaign and weathers criticism from his own former allies following a dismal performance by his chosen candidates in many races during last year’s midterm elections.
