Biden
© APPresident Joe Biden speaks during a meeting with members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, in the Oval Office of the White House on April 20, 2021.
President Biden says he's "praying" that jurors convict former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin of murder for killing George Floyd — less than 24 hours after the judge in the case called on elected officials to stop talking about the trial.

"I'm praying the verdict is the right verdict. Which is - I think it's overwhelming in my view," Biden told reporters at an unrelated Oval Office event Tuesday.

The blunt assessment by the nation's top elected official comes the morning after the judge in the Chauvin case called on politicians to zip their lips.

Judge Peter Cahill said Monday that Rep. Maxine Waters' remarks urging protesters to be more confrontational in the event of an acquittal could lead to the whole case "being overturned."

He went on to say, "This goes back to what I've been saying from the beginning. I wish elected officials would stop talking about this case, especially in a manner that is disrespectful to the rule of law and to the judicial branch and our function."

Biden said that he called Floyd's family on Monday night after jurors began to deliberate in the case.


Comment:



"I've come to know George's family," Biden said. "And his brother, both brothers."

Biden said he waited to call Floyd's family until closing arguments were done so that he wasn't seen as applying pressure to jurors — as Waters (D-Calif.) stands accused of doing.

"I waited until the jury was sequestered and I called," Biden said, without directly mentioning controversy over inflammatory remarks from Waters, who told a protest crowd Sunday near Minneapolis, "We've got to get more confrontational" if Chauvin is acquitted.

Biden said Floyd's family does not want violence if Chauvin is found not guilty.


Comment: Won't matter, unfortunately.


"They're a good family and they're calling for peace and tranquility no matter what that verdict is," Biden said.

But White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki was peppered with questions about the appropriateness of Biden's remarks at her daily press briefing Tuesday.

Journalist Kristen Welker of NBC News asked, "The president has talked about the importance of an independent judiciary," Welker said. "Why is it appropriate for him to weigh in on the verdict, even though the jury is secluded?"

Psaki insisted, "I don't think he would see it as weighing in on the verdict. He was conveying what many people are feeling across the country — which is compassion for the family, what a difficult time this is for many Americans across the country who have been watching this trial very closely."


Comment: Lame response, typical for Psaki.


Reporter Jonathan Lemire of the Associated Press noted the judge's remarks and asked Psaki, "Is there concern now that this — the president's comments — could be grounds for an appeal or even causing a mistrial?"

Psaki said, "He certainly is not looking to influence, but he has been touched by the impact on the family, hence he called the family yesterday and had that discussion. And again, I expect he will weigh in further once there is a verdict."


Comment: This could actually be true. His mental faculties aren't all there, after all.


But Psaki declined to clarify if Biden's remarks are correctly interpreted as calling for Chauvin's conviction, as they appear to be, saying, "I'm not going to provide additional analysis on what he meant."

PBS journalist Yamiche Alcindor further pressed Psaki, saying: "I'm confused about why you won't clarify what the president said about praying that the verdict is right and it being overwhelming. The president obviously volunteered this information. No one asked him for his opinion about the verdict. Why not say this is what the president meant?"

Psaki said, "We're not trying to provide greater information about predictions of a verdict. We want to leave that to the jury to make that determination."

Meanwhile, Republicans are pushing a House resolution to censure Waters.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) defended Waters, saying Monday, "Maxine talked about confrontation in the manner of the Civil Rights movement." House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) countered Tuesday that Waters omitted the word "peaceful" from her call to action.

Chauvin's fate is being carefully watched due to intense interest in the case and fear of civil unrest if he's found not guilty.

Prosecutors said Chauvin murdered Floyd by kneeling on his neck for 9 minutes. But Chauvin's defense argued that heart disease, drug use and potentially car exhaust fumes actually killed Floyd.

Floyd's death triggered nationwide protests and rioting last year — causing up to $2 billion in damage, according to insurance company estimates.

Biden has repeatedly denounced Floyd's death but had previously stopped short of weighing in on the trial itself. His comments came as his administration has been privately weighing how to handle the upcoming verdict, including whether Biden should address the nation and dispatching specially trained community facilitators from the Justice Department.

The jury resumed deliberations Tuesday morning after spending a few hours Monday discussing the case behind closed doors.

The plans for possible presidential remarks are still fluid, with the timing, venue and nature of the remarks still being considered, in part depending on the timing of the verdict, two White House aides told the Associated Press.

The White House has been warily watching the trial proceed in Minneapolis — and the April 11 shooting of Daunte Wright, who like Floyd was black — and is preparing for the possibility of unrest if a guilty verdict is not reached in the trial.

But the White House on Monday stopped short of condemning the remarks by Waters, who called for protesters in Minneapolis to "get more confrontational" with police. Psaki said Biden believes "protests must be peaceful," in response to a reporter's question about Waters' call to action.