WASHINGTON ― President Joe Biden’s fourth and possibly last speech to a joint session of Congress on Thursday night was the feistiest and most direct of his presidency, telling Americans he has delivered on many of his promises while warning them of the threat that predecessor and potential successor Donald Trump poses to democracy itself.
From its start, Biden’s speech put Republicans on defense, leaving House Speaker Mike Johnson to sit in silence as the president rallied in favor of a slew of popular causes: the war in Ukraine, in vitro fertilization and defending American democracy against the man who inspired the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection.
“Jan. 6 lies about the 2020 election and the plots to steal the election posed the gravest threat to our democracy since the Civil War. But they failed. America stood. America stood strong, and democracy prevailed,” Biden said to cheers from Democrats and silence from Republicans gathered in the House chamber in the Capitol.
“My predecessor and some of you here seek to bury the truth about Jan. 6. I will not do that. This is a moment to speak the truth and to bury the lies. Here’s the simplest truth: You can’t love your country only when you win,” he said.
Biden never mentioned Trump’s name, but a half dozen times he lit into his “predecessor” for praising Russian dictator Vladimir Putin and abandoning America’s allies in NATO. For bragging about being able to overturn Roe v. Wade. For mismanaging the COVID pandemic response. For trying to repeal the Affordable Care Act. For boasting about doing nothing to crack down on assault rifles. And for telling his allies in Congress to kill a border security bill that would have given Republicans most of what they have been demanding for years.
“This bill would save lives and bring order to the border,” Biden said. “I’m told my predecessor called members of Congress and the Senate to demand that they block the bill. He feels it would be a political…
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