Over 74 million Americans voted for former President Donald Trump in 2020, and according to President Joe Biden β they present a "clear and present danger to our democracy" and "threat to this country."
Speaking in front of dark red lights and a pair of Marines, Biden delivered a speech titled "Battle for the Soul of the Nation" outside American Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on September 1.
Fewer than ten sentences into his speech, the president of the United States declared that "equality and democracy are under assault."
"We do ourselves no favor to pretend otherwise," he said.
"But tonight, I've come to this place where it all began to speak as plainly as I can to the nation about the threat we face, about the power we have in our own hands to meet these threats, and about the incredible future that lies in front of us if only we choose it," the president continued.
Biden went on to say that the "work of his presidency" is to "build an America that is more prosperous, free and just."
The president asked America to "be honest with each other and ourselves" in that "too much of what's happening in our country today is not normal."
At this point, Biden took aim at the Americans who voted for his political opponent in the 2020 election, branding them extremists.
"Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans represent an extremism that threatens the very foundations of our republic," the president said. BIDEN: "Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans represent an extremism that threatens the very foundation of our Republic..." pic.twitter.com/eXtiEeL5c6
β Art TakingBack πΊπΈ (@ArtValley818_) September 2, 2022
Biden added the caveat that he is not talking about "mainstream" Republicans who are willing to work with him on his Democratic policies.
"I want to be very clear, very clear upfront. Not every Republican, not even a 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," Biden continued. "But there's 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. These are hard things." Biden: The Republican party today is dominated, driven and intimidated by Donald Trump and the Maga Republicans and that is a threat to this country⦠Maga Republicans do not respect the constitution. They do not believe in the rule of law. pic.twitter.com/V6EDTOTicT
β Acyn (@Acyn) September 2, 2022
The president stated that he is the president for "all Americans," before continuing to blast those who preferred his opponent.
"MAGA Republicans do not respect the Constitution, do not believe in the rule of law. They did not recognize the will of the people and refuse to accept the results of a free election," Biden said. "And they're working right now, as I speak in state after state, to give power to the side elections in America. To partisans and cronies, empowering election deniers and undermine democracy itself."
Trump supporters, Biden said, are a "threat" to "the very soul of this country."
"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," he continued. "They promote authoritarian leaders and they fanned the flames of political violence that are a threat to our personal rights, to the pursuit of justice, the rule of law, the very soul of this country."
Speaking of the American citizens who protested at the Capitol on January 6, Biden called them "insurrectionists placing a dagger at the throat of our democracy." .@POTUS: "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 at the throat of our democracy, but they look at them as patriots." pic.twitter.com/xCGf4zw2VW
β Andrew Bates (@AndrewJBates46) September 2, 2022
Biden cited "respected conservative" Circuit Court Judge Michael Luttig, saying that "Trump and extreme MAGA Republicans a clear and present danger to our democracy."
Luttig is a CNN contributor who served on the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit for 15 years after being appointed by George W. Bush.
Before bringing up the deadly Charlottesville rally of 2017, Biden said that the nation is at a point where Americans need to choose to "move forward or to move backwards. To build a future or obsess about the past."
"We are all called by duty and conscience to confront extremists who put their own pursuit of power above all else. Democrats, independents, mainstream Republicans must be stronger, more determined and more committed to saving American democracy than MAGA Republicans are to destroying American democracy," Biden said. "We the people will not let anyone or anything tear us apart."
The president said that "no matter what the white supremacists and extremists say, I made a bet on you, the American people, and that bet is paying off, proving that from the darkness of Charlottesville, of COVID, of gun violence, of insurrection, we can see the light."
Biden then promised that America will "cure cancer as we know it" and "create millions of new jobs in a clean-energy economy."
Later in the speech, after calling millions of Americans a threat, he said that democracy can be defended by "the willingness to see each other not as enemies but as fellow Americans."
At several points, Biden commented on the protesters that could be heard shouting nearby his speech.
Biden concluded by saying, "we are the United States of America. The United States of America. And may God protect our nation. And may God protect all those who stand watch over our democracy. God bless you all. Democracy. Thank you."
Naturally, the speech was not well received by Republicans β and the hashtag "PedoHitler" trended on Twitter. The phrase was commentary on the blood red background and his tendency to get very close to young girls. Evil no longer hides itself. #pedohitler https://t.co/ppz99xaEPO Let this sink in America. If you had any doubts what was coming next those should all be gone now. Heil #PedoHitler pic.twitter.com/5sS9YofVEN The Democrat party thought it was a good idea to have an evil looking red and black set and have #PedoHitler the basement dummy talk like he was Satan.
β Katrina Pierson (@KatrinaPierson) September 2, 2022
β Bronconation (@Bronconation_80) September 2, 2022
This image will be shared throughout history of the most evil and worst President in U.S. History. pic.twitter.com/cEF9g4P2RU
β President 45 again (@ChristianM516) September 2, 2022
Fox News host Tucker Carlson responded by calling the speech "truly nuts." Tucker Carlson reacts to Biden's speech: "Yeah, 'they're a threat,' says the guy with the blood-red Nazi background and marines standing behind him. It's a complete outrage ... This is truly nuts and threatening to the future of the United States." pic.twitter.com/SzmLiSMYzh
β Scott Morefield (@SKMorefield) September 2, 2022
WATCH BIDEN'S FULL 'BATTLE FOR THE SOUL OF THE NATION' SPEECH HERE: