Biden Blasts “Extremist” MAGA as “Dangerous” – “The MAGA Movement Does Not Share the Basic Beliefs of Democracy”

William FurneyOct 29, 2023

Minute Read

President Biden has lashed out at the Make America Great Again (MAGA) campaign slogan and movement of Donald Trump, blasting it as extremist and dangerous for democracy in the United States.

Honoring John McCain

Image Credit: Christopher Halloran / Shutterstock.

The president was speaking at an event in Phoenix, Arizona, honoring late Republican senator John McCain, who died in 2018 aged 81 and with whom the Democratic president was friendly.

MAGA ‘Not Democratic’

Image Credit: Aaron of L.A. Photography/Shutterstock.

President Biden blasted at the McCain memorial: “There is something dangerous happening in America. There is an extremist movement that does not share the basic beliefs of our democracy: the MAGA movement. History has brought us to a new time of testing.”

Democracy for the People

Biden said that Democracy in America must remain the “rule of the people, not rule of the monarchy, not rule of money, not rule of the mighty.”

Political Violence

Image Credit: Thomas Hengge / Shutterstock.

Possibly referencing the events of January 6, 2021 at the US Capitol was besieged by thousands of supporters of then-president Donald Trump, Biden said: “Democracy means rejecting and repudiating political violence, regardless of party, such violence is never, never, never acceptable in America,” adding that “It’s undemocratic, and it must never be normalized to gain political power.”

January 6 Attack

Trump lost the 2020 presidential election to Biden but refused to accept defeat, falsely claiming the vote was “rigged” and ultimately “stolen” from him. He urged his followers to gather at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, and protest at an affirmation declaring Biden the winner. Violence broke out that left five people dead, and thousands were arrested.

First Trump Attack

It was Biden’s first major attack on Trump as the two men prepare for next year’s presidential election, which will be held on November 5. Before that, their respective parties and their voters will choose their candidate to run in the race, in primaries starting in January.

Concerns Over Age

Editorial credit: Nicole Glass Photography / Shutterstock.

Biden is 80 years old while Trump is 77, with many saying they’re too old to run and potentially become president. There are particular concerns for Biden, given recent appearances in which he tripped on stage and on the steps of his Air Force One plane, as well as seemingly confused and incoherent speeches and comments at press conferences.

Presidential Dead Heat

Both Biden and Trump are equally popular with their voters and are polling at just under 50 percent each. It suggests that if they both get their party’s nomination, it would be a tightly fought race for the White House. Trump is the leading Republican primary candidate, with an approximate 50 point lead over rivals who include Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Biden is at around 70 percent of Democrats who want him to be their candidate.

Trump’s Legal Problems

Editorial credit: Potashev Aleksandr / Shutterstock.

Democrats will be hoping Trump’s many legal difficulties will give their candidate a lead as voting day nears in the 2024 presidential election. Trump has been indicted four times and is facing 91 criminal charges. They include allegedly trying to overturn the 2020 election results and alleged mishandling of secretive government files. Trump is also fighting off fraud charges related to his Trump Organization as well as battling a hush money case in which it’s alleged he paid a former adult film star to keep quiet about an affair he allegedly had with her.

Threat to US Joint Chiefs

In his speech in Arizona, Biden also criticized his possible 2024 rival for making threats against the US Joint Chiefs of Staff and calling for the Justice Department to be defunded.

Military Dead ‘Suckers’

Biden also reminded his audience that Trump had refused to visit a military ceremony during a trip to France in 2018 over what media outlets reported was his calling dead soldiers “losers” and “suckers.”

“Is John a sucker?” asked Biden of McCain, a decorated war hero who was tortured in Vietnam as a prisoner of war.

‘Above the Constitution’

Biden blasted Trump for remarks he made online about wanting to suspend the US Constitution in certain circumstances, such as when there is a presidential election dispute.

“I believe very strongly that the defining feature of our democracy is our Constitution. I believe in free and fair elections and the peaceful transfer of power,” the president said.

Trump Campaign Hits Back

Reacting to Biden’s speech and his attacks on Trump, his campaign spokesman Steven Cheung said it was “the radical Left Democrats, now led by Crooked Joe Biden, [that] are the greatest threat to democracy the United States of America has ever faced.”