Joe Biden said in an interview on Tuesday that prosecuting a former president wouldn’t be very good for democracy, but that he would not stand in the way of a future Justice Department pursuing criminal charges against Trump when he leaves office.
The comments were made during an interview with members of the National Association of Black Journalists and National Association of Hispanic Journalists, the same interview for which he received criticism yesterday for asking a journalist if he was a junkie.
Biden stated he would not direct a prosecution.
“If [a case] prove[s] to be a criminal offense, then in fact, that would be up to the attorney general to decide whether he or she wanted to proceed with it. I am not going to make that individual judgment,” Biden added.
On immigration, Biden said he would not tear down parts of the wall that was built by Trump, but that he vowed to end the construction of the wall. Reversing Trump’s orders to “stay in Mexico” for asylum seekers would also have to be done carefully, saying “we shouldn’t be putting these people when they come across the border in jail, we should be monitoring them.”
Biden had little insight into his vp pick, but when asked about a campaign staffer complaining that Kamala Harris was not “conciliatory” toward Biden early in the debates, he said he didn’t hold grudges, and that Harris was very much in contention.
Biden’s plan on opening schools would only be done if it was done safely.
Biden’s plan includes giving school districts “uniform guidance without political interference” on safety protocols for schools that are able to reopen, directing resources to districts to implement guidance and bolstering virtual learning for districts that can’t reopen safely.
He admitted that election security keeps him up at nights.
“Making sure everyone who wants to vote gets to vote, making sure that everyone’s vote is counted. And we’re going to undertake a historic effort in terms of resources, commitment to beat back every voter suppression effort.”
See NPR.