Kevin McCarthy: Biden 'Has Divided Us Further'
House Minority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
By Nick Koutsobinas | Sunday, 11 September 2022 07:00 PM EDT
Responding to President Joe Biden's speech in which he labeled the rhetoric of "MAGA Republicans" as that of a "clear and present danger," which holds definite legal implications, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy questioned Biden's ability to unite the country.
On Sunday on Fox News, host Maria Bartiromo prompted McCarthy with a video of Biden's Sept. 1 speech in front of Independence Hall in Philadelphia.
"I thought he was going to unite us," McCarthy responded. "He has divided us further. We're more divided today than we were on his Inauguration Day. But listen to why. Why does 75% of America believe we're headed in the wrong direction? Because everything costs more based upon the Democrat policies.
"I think," McCarthy continued, "we need somebody that will not attack you based upon your political beliefs but actually respect a difference of policy and unite us based on we are all Americans. That's something we should remember today [on 9/11] more than ever."
During his Sept. 1 speech, Biden said that "MAGA Republicans" presented a "clear and present danger to our democracy."
"They look," Biden said, "at the mob that stormed the United States Capitol on Jan. 6 — brutally attacking law enforcement — not as insurrectionists who placed a dagger to the throat of our democracy, but they look at them as patriots … That's why respected conservatives, like Federal Circuit Court Judge Michael Luttig, has called Trump and the extreme MAGA Republicans, quote, a 'clear and present danger' to our democracy."
While the invocation of the phrase "clear and present danger," which was introduced by Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, may sound like a linguistic flourish, it holds implications for striking civil rights such as the First Amendment in the face of a national emergency.
But while no such precedent for the Biden administration has been set by a judge, on the same day as Biden's "Unity," speech, a litigious civil organization, the New Civil Liberties Alliance, issued a press release detailing that the Biden administration has pressured social media companies to squash narratives pertaining to COVID-19 and the suppression of free speech.
"The New Civil Liberties Alliance, the attorney general of Missouri and the attorney general of Louisiana have filed a lawsuit that blows the lid off a sprawling federal censorship regime that will shock the conscience of Americans. The joint statement on discovery disputes in the lawsuit, State of Missouri ex rel. Schmitt, et al. v. Joseph R. Biden, Jr., et al., reveals scores of federal officials across at least 11 federal agencies have secretly communicated with social media platforms to censor and suppress private speech federal officials disfavor. This unlawful enterprise has been wildly successful."