Biden Appeals to Our Better Natures

 Rachels's missive:

Who We Are

On January 6th Joe Biden addressed the nation in his first speech as our official President-Elect, as Trump fanatics sacked the Capitol. Biden appealed to our better natures, proclaiming: “Let me be very clear: The scenes of chaos at the Capitol do not reflect the true America. This is not who we are.”

I both felt comforted and inspired by his speech -- yet also understand those who are saying that yes, this is who we are, and we need to confront it.

One of the refrains that the rioters spoke on January 6th was “This is 1776!” This invocation of revolution also made me think of President Trump invoking an Executive Order for a 1776 Commission to promote “patriotic education” in September 2020.

It came about in response to the 1619 Project, “an ongoing initiative from the New York Times Magazine that began in 2019, the 400th anniversary of the beginning of American slavery [which] aims to reframe the country’s history by placing the consequences of slavery and the contributions of black Americans at the very center of our national narrative.” Trump declared that the Project was the best example of how “[t]he left has warped, distorted and defiled the American story with deceptions, falsehoods and lies.” In announcing his commission, he proclaimed that “America’s founding set in motion the unstoppable chain of events that abolished slavery, secured civil rights, defeated communism and fascism and built the most fair, equal and prosperous nation in human history.”

After bemoaning cancel culture, Trump announced that “[t]he only path to national unity is through our shared identity as Americans.” He "authorized White House budget director Russ Vought to cancel federal workforce trainings that use 'critical race theory,' and in fact had a tip line set up."

I find it extremely ironic that Trump used depictions, falsehoods and lies to fire up a mob to defile the American Capitol while they defined themselves as revolutionaries and patriots while using any means necessary to support their leader’s fascist aims.

I also find a difference between Biden saying “This is not who we

are” and Trump dictating a “patriotic education.” I have found Biden consistently acknowledging and addressing the issues in the nation. He was not saying that this does not exist, but this is not the whole of us, and calling on us for better. As he said:

"The words of a President matter, no matter how good or bad that president is. At their best, the words of a president can inspire.

At their worst, they can incite."

Biden spoke to inspire, and to both call out and call an end to Trump’s inciting violence. His words may be aspirational, but I do not think they deny reality -- they call for us to see the ugliness but not let ourselves be defined by it. Both words that inspire and incite can be performative -- through their being spoken, they call a reality into being. In saying “This is not who we are,” Biden makes us look at the reality and who we want to be, and calls on us to act to bring that into the world.

Today President Trump will be impeached for a second time. There are some that say that it should be put aside for national unity. I believe that the crimes that have been committed need to be addressed for us to be able to go forward. Trump has been threatening that it will be divisive and dangerous to go forward with impeachment because it will cause great anger. Keeping him in power out of fear of what people will do is surrendering to a terrorist.

This is not who we are.