COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE GRAND ARMY OF THE REPUBLIC:

THE PRESIDENT:  My fellow Americans, please, if you have a seat, take it.  I speak to you tonight from sacred ground in America: Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

 

This is where America made its Declaration of Independence to the world more than two centuries ago with an idea, unique among nations, that in America, we're all created equal.

 

This is where the United States Constitution was written and debated.

 

This is where we set in motion the most extraordinary experiment of self-government the world has ever known with three simple words: "We, the People."  "We, the People."

 

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.

 

So tonight, I have come this place where it all began to speak as plainly as I can to the nation about the threats 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.

 

We must never forget: We, the people, are the true heirs of the American experiment that began more than two centuries ago.

 

We, the people, have burning inside each of us the flame of liberty that was lit here at Independence Hall -- a flame that lit our way through abolition, the Civil War, Suffrage, the Great Depression, world wars, Civil Rights.

 

That sacred flame still burns now in our time as we build an America that is more prosperous, free, and just.

 

That is the work of my presidency, a mission I believe in with my whole soul.

 

But first, we must be honest with each other and with ourselves. 

 

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.

 

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.

 

These are hard things. 

 

But I'm an American President -- not the President of red America or blue America, but of all America.

 

And 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. [...]

 

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.

 

That's why respected conservatives, like Federal Circuit Court Judge Michael Luttig, has called Trump and the extreme MAGA Republicans, quote, a "clear and present danger" to our democracy.

 

But while the threat to American democracy is real, I want to say as clearly as we can: We are not powerless in the face of these threats.  We are not bystanders in this ongoing attack on democracy.

 

There are far more Americans -- far more Americans from every -- from every background and belief who reject the extreme MAGA ideology than those that accept it.  (Applause.)

 

And, folks, it is within our power, it's in our hands -- yours and mine -- to stop the assault on American democracy.

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