Biden Brings The Heat
What I think it means
For the first time in a while, I woke up feeling energized so, thank you, President Biden.
Last night was likely Biden’s last, best chance before the election to speak in front of an audience as large as the one he spoke to last night (over 32 million viewers). He had to knock it out of the park. And he did.
But before he took that final swing, he made sure the bases were loaded first.
In the course of his master class, Biden got considerable help from the other side—whose tantrums and outbursts and lies he handled with the deftness of a practiced Kindergarten teacher:
They fumed, they pouted, they squirmed and, like Mike Johnson, they sat silently even when Biden was talking about removing lead from water in order to protect our children, lowering prescription drug costs, saving democracy from Russian aggression, and the record growth of small businesses—basically anything good about America or the positive progress this country has made since Biden had been in charge.
President Biden confronted the nation’s threats
Right out of the gate, he made explicit the central issue of our time:
“Not since President Lincoln and the Civil War have freedom and democracy been under assault at home as they are today.” And just a minute later:
“History is watching. If the United States walks away, it will put Ukraine at risk. Europe is at risk. The free world will be at risk, emboldening others to what they wish to do us harm.”
What set him apart from his predecessor President Biden took a hard line against our nation’s enemies:
Foreign:
“My message to President Putin, who I have known for a long time, is simple: We will not walk away. We will not bow down. I will not bow down. [emphasis mine]”
And domestic:
“History is watching. Just like history watched three years ago on Jan. 6, when insurrectionists stormed this very Capitol and placed a dagger to the throat of American democracy. . . . Jan. 6 lies about the 2020 election, and the plots to steal the election, posed a great, gravest threat to U.S. democracy since the Civil War…
But they failed. America stood. America stood strong and democracy prevailed.”
President Biden was not afraid to call out Donald and his enablers
“We must be honest. The threat to democracy must be defended. My predecessor and some of you here seek to bury the truth about Jan. 6. I will not do that.”
I love that he went straight at the insurrectionists in the chamber—especially one of the legal architects of the insurrection, Mike Johnson, who was sitting right behind him.
He defended women’s reproductive freedom
Biden needed to go forcefully after the horrors of the fallout from the Dobbs decision and the more recent Alabama decision outlawing In Vitro Fertilization—the direct result of Republican fetal personhood bills—and he did. I was grateful when he called out and stared down the right-wing justices who were there, although, of course, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, the worst offenders, didn’t bother to show up.
“There are state laws banning the freedom to choose, criminalizing doctors, forcing survivors of rape and incest to leave their states to get the treatment they need. . . . Many of you in this chamber and my predecessor are promising to pass a national ban on reproductive freedom. My God, what freedom else would you take away?
[I]n its decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court majority wrote the following, and with all due respect justices, ‘Women are not without electoral or political power.’ You’re about to realize just how much you got right about that.”
That is what they call a mic-drop moment.
One of the Biden lines that get the most attention was: “You can’t love your country only when you win.” But the Republicans have been placing party over country for so long—before Donald Trump came on the scene—that I didn’t find it particularly noteworthy, although I’m glad he said it.
Some of my favorite moments of the speech, the moments that resonated with me—of which there were many—included Biden’s brief declarative phrases.
“If anyone here tries to cut Social Security or Medicare or raise the retirement age, I will stop you.” [my emphasis]
In speaking about gun violence, he pointed out that “my predecessor told the N.R.A. he’s proud he did nothing on guns when he was president. Oof. After another shooting in Iowa recently, he said when asked what to do about it, he said, ‘Just get over it.’ There’s his quote. ‘Just get over it.’ I say stop it. Stop it, stop it, stop it.”
Biden destroyed the Republican talking point about his age
Much to my consternation, Biden’s age, thanks in large part to Republican propaganda and the media’s laziness, has become a central issue in the campaign. Even some reliable allies couldn’t help but point out that, even though Biden’s speech was exceptional, there were still some verbal slips and gaffes—to which I say, you try speaking in public to tens of millions of people for an hour in any situation, let alone such a high-pressure one—without making any mistakes.
Under the circumstances, the main goal of last night’s speech was to dispel those concerns. And he did.
President Biden showed us he is ready to meet the moment
To Democrats who continue to look for reasons to be worried, I would say this: Republicans don’t seem to give a shit that their candidate, Inmate No. P01135809, is a rapist and business fraud who faces 4 indictments and 91 counts; and who plans to destroy American democracy for the purpose of enriching himself and staying out of prison. So, why should we obsess about the fact that our infinitely superior candidate is only three years older than the rapist?
What to say about the Republican rebuttal other than to marvel that Katie Britt was allowed to leave her kitchen long enough to serve in the Senate? Between her and Tuberville, Alabama really has disgraced itself since failing to re-elect Doug Jones. There was definitely a “Won’t somebody please think of the children” vibe mixed with a worsening anxiety over the course of her remarks that Britt might have had a boiling bunny rabbit on the stove behind her in that bizarrely sterile kitchen of hers.
Don’t waste your time watching it. There will, almost certainly, be a version on Saturday Night Live this weekend. I doubt it will be funnier, but it will definitely be less terrifying.
In the meantime, here’s a great take on what Britt’s prep should have been like:
Donald succeeded in installing Lara Trump, his daughter-in-law, at the head of the Republican National Committee. He essentially owns her and Eric (his son). But she and Donald also have a lot in common—they’re inept, unqualified, corrupt to the bone, and self-serving. As pathetic as this turn of events is on one level, it’s also a dangerous turn—the stuff of banana republics. But let’s dwell for a moment on just how deeply embarrassing this is—or should be—for the Republican Party, which richly deserves it.
Biden was wonderful —he put my mind at ease. The man isn't perfect, but he's pretty damned good, and deserves a lot of credit for his leadership and his work in office.
The only thing Joe could have done to better demonstrate his vigor and fitness for office would have been to cartwheel down the aisle, kicking Marge's fucking MAGA hat off her head on the way by. He nailed it, and burned the MAGAs to the ground in the process.