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The National Association of Broadcasters Leadership Foundation has rescinded an invitation to Robert De Niro to attend next week’s celebration of his service to America after the Oscar winner’s fiery anti-Trump remarks before the actor’s criminal trial. former president in Manhattan on Tuesday. De Niro was invited to the press conference by Joe Biden’s presidential campaign.
At the NAB event, De Niro was scheduled to receive the organization’s 2024 Leadership Service Award, NABLF’s highest individual honor in recognition of charitable work and public service.
“The Celebration of Service to America Awards are intended to honor the vital local journalism and public service that local radio and television stations provide to their communities,” NAB said in a statement provided to Deadline. “This event is proudly bipartisan, bringing together people from across the political spectrum to celebrate the impactful work of local broadcasters and our partners.”
The statement continued: “While we strongly support the right of every American to exercise free speech and participate in civic engagement, it is clear that Mr. De Niro’s recent high-profile activities will distract from the philanthropic work that we hoped to recognize. To maintain the focus on serving the honorees, Mr. De Niro will no longer participate in the event.
In response, in a statement to The hill, De Niro said: “I support the work of the NAB Leadership Foundation and would like to express my appreciation and gratitude for what the Foundation has done and will continue to do for the benefit of all of us, and I wish them well in their well continuous. work.”
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De Niro, who recently commented on a Biden campaign ad, warned of Trump’s potential return to the White House, calling him a “tyrant.”
“Now he is promising to use our own military to attack American citizens,” De Niro said. “He’s the bully, he’s the bully he tells us he’ll be, and believe me, he means it.”
RELATED: Hollywood Reacts to Donald Trump Verdicts: ’34 Is Now My Favorite Number’
Trump was convicted Thursday of 34 counts of falsifying business records as part of a plot to prevent a possible sex scandal from derailing his first presidential campaign.
De Niro’s response to the verdict? “Justice has been served. »