No more Mr. Nice Guy

President Biden’s speech to mark the anniversary [of the January 6 insurrection], delivered with force amid the solemn grandeur of Statuary Hall, was vital in its own way. It marked an abrupt shift, with the 46th president taking the fight head-on to his predecessor, former President Trump

[...]

“The former president of the United States of America has created and spread a web of lies about the 2020 election,” Biden said. “He’s done so because he values power over principle, because he sees his own interests as more important than his country’s interests and America's interests, and because his bruised ego matters more to him than our democracy or our Constitution.”

The reference to a “bruised ego” seemed calculated to get under Trump’s skin. So did the instances in Biden’s speech where he basically called his predecessor a loser — the label that Trump appears to detest more than any other.

“He’s not just a former president. He’s a defeated former president,” Biden said. He added moments later, “You can’t love your country only when you win.”

  The Hill

Ouch.

Many people in the Democratic ranks writ large also believe that the kind of fiery denunciation Biden delivered on Thursday was overdue.

After all, they note, the toxins that fueled the attack on the Capitol are still surging through the body politic one year later. A Republican Party that seemed briefly inclined to breaking with Trump in the aftermath of the insurrection is now almost universally acquiescent toward him.

David Axelrod, the former senior aide to President Obama, tweeted that Biden’s approach was “right,” in part because “the Big Lie that provoked the mob has taken root with a large majority of [Republicans]. Trump continues to peddle it. Unaddressed, it will spawn more assaults on our democracy.”

Exactly.

The next immediate item on the agenda is voting rights. Biden and Vice President Harris will advocate for that cause next week in Georgia, even though the Democratic-led push for federal legislation faces stiff odds.

Not a moment too soon.

...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.