Trump’s conviction prompts election-year debate among Democrats: How much to focus on the verdict?

By STEVE PEOPLES
AP National Political Writer

BRISTOL, Pa. (AP) — Joe Biden’s campaign is signaling new plans to incorporate Donald Trump’s recent felony conviction as a core element of the Democratic president’s reelection message. Five months before Election Day, there are key voices — some within Biden’s campaign headquarters — who believe that Trump’s felony conviction marks a significant turning point that leading Democrats should lean into. But there are others who favor a more cautious approach. They’re fearful of a voter backlash if Democratic officials push too hard on a criminal conviction that Trump insists, without evidence, was “rigged” against him. The Democrats’ decision could prove pivotal in the evolving Biden-Trump rematch — and in the battle for control of the House and Senate.