Biden laughs when asked if Trump indictment is “politically divisive”

President Joe Biden laughed when asked by a reporter if the indictment against former President Donald Trump was “politically divisive.”

Trump pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records stemming from a $130,000 payment made to adult-film star Stormy Daniels during his 2016 presidential campaign. The hush money paid by Michael Cohen, Trump’s former attorney, is tied to an alleged affair between Daniels and Trump—making Trump the first sitting or former U.S. president to be charged in a criminal investigation.

The former president has denied having an affair with Daniels and has maintained his innocence, accusing prosecutors of engaging in a politically motivated witch hunt aimed at weakening his 2024 presidential bid.

Biden has remained mum on Trump’s ongoing legal strife. White House authorities have thus far declined to comment on Trump’s indictment.

During a meeting with the Council of Advisors on Science and Technology on Tuesday afternoon, a reporter pressed Biden on whether the charges against Trump are politically disuniting.

“Is the indictment of your predecessor politically divisive?” the reporter, whose identity was unclear, asked.

Biden remained silent, declining to answer. Instead, he smiled and laughed as the group of reporters was escorted out of the closed-door meeting, following his opening remarks.

Biden ran in 2020 against Trump on a platform emphasizing unity, pledging to bring Democrats and Republicans together. But the GOP has argued his tenure as president, which has seen Biden at times go on the offensive against some of his conservative critics, has further divided Americans.

Earlier Tuesday, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre declined to provide comments on Trump’s indictment during her daily press briefing, citing longstanding policy against commenting on the open investigation.

“I’m not going to comment on that,” she said. “It is an ongoing case, and I’ve been very clear about that. We’ve been prudent on that—not commenting on ongoing cases—and we’re going to stick to that.”

She added that the arraignment is not a “focus” for Biden, telling reporters, “The president is going to focus on the American people, like he does every day. This is not something that is a focus for him. He is going to focus on things like making sure that we continue to lower prices for the American people.”

While Trump’s GOP supporters have largely rallied around the former president amid the indictment, arguing the prosecution has treated him unfairly, Democrats have cheered what they view as overdue legal consequences for the ex-president.

Newsweek has reached out to the White House via email for further comment.