Why Joe Biden is making democracy itself a major political campaign issue

Many Americans fear US democracy is in crisis. Biden’s speech is a response, writes Eric Garcia

Joe Biden gave his speech at the Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia (Getty)

President Joe Biden has given a major speech about the “soul of America” and the state of democracy in the United States. He was speaking in Pennsylvania, where Republican Doug Mastriano, a state senator who wanted to delay the certification of the 2020 presidential election, is running for governor.

Mastriano was also present at the US Capitol on the day of the 6 January riot (though he says he left before it took place) and bussed supporters of Donald Trump to Washington on that day. If elected this November, he could easily go rogue and attempt to block the certification of the 2024 presidential election results if the commonwealth elects a Democrat for president.

Mastriano is one of the “Maga Republicans” that Biden chose to warn Americans about in his primetime address on the state of democracy.

“If we do our duty, in 2022 and beyond, then ages still to come will say [that] we – all of us here – we kept the faith, we preserved democracy,” he said towards the end of his address. And in doing so, the president has ensured that safeguarding the future of the republic will be a major campaign issue.

There is evidence that Americans agree with this sentiment. A CBS News poll released this week showed 72 per cent of Americans saying they believe that the rule of law and democracy are under threat, with 86 per cent believing that the influence of money in politics is the biggest problem, followed by 69 per cent who cite the potential for political violence, and 67 per cent who are concerned about attempts to overturn elections.

It is that last threat to which Biden referred when he talked about Maga Republicans. Republicans in crucial swing states like Michigan, Arizona and Wisconsin have nominated candidates who say that the 2020 election was stolen – and even one who hasn’t ruled out support for overturning the 2020 presidential election results.

“They see their Maga failure to stop a peaceful transfer of power after the 2020 election as preparation for the 2022 and 2024 elections,” said the president. He also not-so-subtly called out his former friend, senator Lindsey Graham, for warning about “riots in the streets” if Trump was indicted.

Biden was quick to say that his words did not describe all Republicans.

“Not every Republican, not even a majority of Republicans, are Maga Republicans,” he said. “Not every Republican embraces their extreme ideology. I know, because I’ve been able to work with these mainstream Republicans.”

This is partially just political bromides: all but 10 Republicans opposed impeaching Trump for his actions on 6 January, and all but two of those who voted to impeach him survived their primaries. Two of the Republican senators who voted to convict Trump could be succeeded by acolytes the former president has endorsed.

But fighting right-wing extremism requires showing the risks of such a regime, which is why the president said that it would move the country “toward an America where there is no right to choose. No right to privacy. No right to contraception. No right to marry who you love.”

Conversely, Biden and the Democrats are offering a more optimistic alternative to Maga ideology, hence the setting out of his administration’s recent string of accomplishments, such as the American Rescue Plan, the bipartisan infrastructure bill, and, most recently, signing the Inflation Reduction Act, so far the biggest piece of climate legislation of the 21st century.

“The cynics and the critics tell us nothing can get done. But they’re wrong,” he said. “There’s not a single thing America cannot do; not a single thing beyond our capacity if we do it together.”

By saying this, Biden essentially argued that democracy still works, and that the United States does not need a would-be authoritarian government led by a strongman.

Of course, Biden’s speech omitted some important details, such as the Democrats’ failure to protect the right to vote – perhaps the greatest bulwark against fighting authoritarianism – largely as a result of Democratic senators Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema’s refusal to change the filibuster; as well as the Democrats’ inability to protect abortion rights, because of Manchin’s opposition, even without the filibuster.

But while Biden didn’t explicitly mention these, his point that democracy must be preserved also makes the case for beating back right-wing extremists, which could provide a windfall for a future Congress to pass these pieces of legislation.