Before and after President Joe Biden’s speech to a joint session of Congress on Wednesday night, Republican lawmakers repeatedly blasted him for allegedly breaking his pledge to unify the country. But the problem may actually lie in the GOP’s concept of “unity.”
Biden has indeed pressed for unity in a number of statements and speeches he’s made before, including in his inauguration speech. Overcoming the challenges presently facing the country “requires more than words,” Biden said on January 20. “It requires that most elusive of things in a democracy: Unity.”
Within that same speech, Biden noted he was for “uniting our people” and “uniting our nation.” To Republicans, however, calls for unity appear to only mean acquiescing or compromising with their demands, not the wants and needs of Americans as a whole. Continue reading.