President Joe Biden went after “MAGA Republicans” over and over again during his primetime speech.
Biden delivered the speech from Philadelphia’s Independence Hall on Thursday night.
“We must be honest with each other and with ourselves,” Biden said.
He added, “Too much of what’s happening in our country today is not normal. Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans represent an extremism that threatens the very foundations of our republic.”
Acknowledging that “not even the majority of Republicans are MAGA Republicans,” Biden continued, “I know because I’ve been able to work with these mainstream Republicans.”
Watch Biden’s remarks below:
"Equality and Democracy are under assault. We do ourselves no favor to pretend otherwise," says President Biden, at the beginning of his remarks tonight.
— CBS News (@CBSNews) September 2, 2022
"Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans represent an extremism that threatens the very foundations of our Republic." pic.twitter.com/Yc9sdolykO
Still, he explained that there is no question the Republican Party is “dominated, driven and intimidated by Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans. And that is a threat to this country.”
Additionally, Biden claimed that “MAGA Republicans” do not “respect the Constitution. They do not believe in the rule of the law. They do not recognize the will of the people. They refuse to accept the results of a free election.”
The president’s speech comes just a week after he suggested the MAGA ideology is like semi-fascism, as IJR reported.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was pressed on the criticism of Biden’s remark.
“We understand we hit a nerve. We get that,” she said.
Jean-Pierre continued, “We understand that they’re trying to hide. And we understand that ultra MAGA officeholders want to play games here and dodge accountability for their extreme proposals and actions. But they’re just telling on themselves.”
The messaging coming from the White House is different than that at the beginning of the Biden administration.
During his inauguration day in 2021, Biden vowed to bring Americans together.
“We can join forces, stop the shouting and lower the temperature. For without unity there is no peace, only bitterness and fury. No progress, only exhausting outrage. No nation, only a state of chaos. This is our historic moment of crisis and challenge, and unity is the path forward,” Biden said at the time.