President Joe Biden made a political statement during prime time at the White House, criticizing President Trump's character and the Supreme Court's decision to grant immunity.
video:
Biden said:
The presidency is the most powerful office in the world, one that tests not only judgment but, more importantly, character. It requires not only courage to exercise the full powers of the presidency, but also wisdom to respect the limitations of the presidency.
This country was founded on the principle that there is no king in this country. We are all equal before the law, and no one is above the law. The president of the United States is no exception. But today’s Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity fundamentally changes for all practical purposes, and today’s ruling almost certainly means that there are no limits to what the president can do. This is a fundamentally new principle and a dangerous precedent. The power of the president will no longer be limited by law, even by the Supreme Court of the United States.
The only limits are those imposed by the President himself. Today’s decision continues the assaults the courts have made in recent years on long-established rights. Taking away a woman’s right to choose undermines the rule of law in this country, as today’s decision does. Four years ago, my predecessor sent a violent mob into the U.S. Capitol to prevent a peaceful transfer of power. We saw it with our own eyes, and we sat there and watched it happen. The assault on police. The looting of the Capitol.
A mob hunting down House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. A gallows erected to hang Vice President Mike Pence. The man who sent the mob into the U.S. Capitol on one of the darkest days in American history is facing potential criminal charges for what happened that day. The American people deserve answers before the upcoming election. Before they are asked to vote again this fall. About what happened on January 6th.
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Perhaps most importantly, the American people must once again decide to entrust Donald Trump with the presidency. They must be much bolder. As you know, when our country was founded, the character of our first president, George Washington, defined the presidency. He believed that power was limited and not absolute. That power always resided in the hands of the people. Now, more than 200 years later, today’s Supreme Court decision will once again depend on the character of the man and woman who hold that office, and they will define the limits of that office’s power, because the law can no longer do that. I know that I will respect the limits of presidential power that I have had for three and a half years, but any president, including Donald Trump, will now be free to ignore the law. I agree with Justice Sotomayor’s dissent today. She said that in every visible exercise of power, the president is now a king above the law. I dissent because of fear for our democracy. End quote. The American people must dissent, too. I dissent. God bless you all. May God help you preserve our democracy. May God protect our troops.
This was the message America needed to hear. America needed to hear the president, and it needed to hear that the Supreme Court's ruling on executive power meant that a personal contest between the two leading contenders for the presidency was on the ballot.
Biden was clear and powerful, and his presence dispelled recent talk and rumors that he could not speak or appear in public after 4 p.m. If Biden wants to convince voters that he is qualified to serve as president, the best way to do so is to show the American people that he is doing it.