Biden: Equality And Democracy Under Assault By MAGA Republicans

 

ICYMI, excerpts from President Biden's speech last night in Philadelphia at Independence Hall, where the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were born:

 

These two documents and the ideas they embody — equality and democracy — are the rock upon which this nation is built.  They are how we became the greatest nation on Earth.  They are why, for more than two centuries, America has been a beacon to the world.
 
But as I stand here tonight, equality and democracy are under assault.  We do ourselves no favor to pretend otherwise.

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Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans represent an extremism that threatens the very foundations of our republic.
 
Now, I want to be very clear — (applause) — very clear up front: Not every Republican, not even the majority of Republicans, are MAGA Republicans.  Not every Republican embraces their extreme ideology.
 
I know because I’ve been able to work with these mainstream Republicans.
 

But there is no question that the Republican Party today is dominated, driven, and intimidated by Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans, and that is a threat to this country.

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... I believe it is my duty — my duty to level with you, to tell the truth no matter how difficult, no matter how painful.
 
And here, in my view, is what is true: MAGA Republicans do not respect the Constitution.  They do not believe in the rule of law.  They do not recognize the will of the people. 
 
They refuse to accept the results of a free election.  And they’re working right now, as I speak, in state after state to give power to decide elections in America to partisans and cronies, empowering election deniers to undermine democracy itself.
 
MAGA forces are determined to take this country backwards — backwards to an America where there is no right to choose, no right to privacy, no right to contraception, no right to marry who you love.
 
They promote authoritarian leaders, and they fan the flames of political violence that are a threat to our personal rights, to the pursuit of justice, to the rule of law, to the very soul of this country.

They look at the mob that stormed the United States Capitol on January 6th — brutally attacking law enforcement — not as insurrectionists who placed a dagger to the throat of our democracy, but they look at them as patriots. *
 
And they see their MAGA failure to stop a peaceful transfer of power after the 2020 election as preparation for the 2022 and 2024 elections.
 
They tried everything last time to nullify the votes of 81 million people.  This time, they’re determined to succeed in thwarting the will of the people.

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This is a nation that honors our Constitution.  We do not reject it.  (Applause.)
 
This is a nation that believes in the rule of law.  We do not repudiate it.  (Applause.)
 
This is a nation that respects free and fair elections.  We honor the will of the people.  We do not deny it.  (Applause.)
 
And this is a nation that rejects violence as a political tool.  We do not encourage violence.
 
We are still an America that believes in honesty and decency and respect for others, patriotism, liberty, justice for all, hope, possibilities. 
 
We are still, at our core, a democracy.  (Applause.)

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Democracy cannot survive when one side believes there are only two outcomes to an election: either they win or they were cheated.  And that’s where MAGA Republicans are today.  (Applause.)
 
They don’t understand what every patriotic American knows: You can’t love your country only when you win.  (Applause.)  It’s fundamental. 

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MAGA Republicans look at America and see carnage and darkness and despair.  They spread fear and lies –- lies told for profit and power. 
 
But I see a very different America — an America with an unlimited future, an America that is about to take off.  I hope you see it as well.  Just look around.
 
I believed we could lift America from the depths of COVID, so we passed the largest economic recovery package since Franklin Delano Roosevelt.  And today, America’s economy is faster, stronger than any other advanced nation in the world.  (Applause.)  We have more to go.
 
I believed we could build a better America, so we passed the biggest infrastructure investment since President Dwight D. Eisenhower.  And we’ve now embarked on a decade of rebuilding
the nation’s roads, bridges, highways, ports, water systems, high-speed Internet, railroads.  (Applause.)
 
I believed we could make America safer, so we passed the most significant gun safety law since President Clinton.  (Applause.)
 
I believed we could go from being the highest cost of prescriptions in the world to making prescription drugs and healthcare more affordable, so we passed the most significant healthcare reforms since President Obama signed the Affordable Care Act.  (Applause.)

 

And I believed we could create — we could create a clean energy future and save the planet, so we passed the most important climate initiative ever, ever, ever.  (Applause.) 

* In a stark reminder of what's at stake and the enduring evil that we're up against, the Malignant Loser has announced that he would issue full pardons and a Government apology to the fascist MAGA rioters who assaulted the Capitol on January 6.  That's what fighting for the soul of America is coming down to.

(Photo: Yeah, those are Marines back there;  suck on it, *semi-fascists*/  Jim Lo Scalzo/ EPA)