Following the former US President Trump, the current US President Joe Biden has been in office for only a year and has also been labeled as a "separatist". Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell slammed Biden as "not like a president" on the 12th, saying his speech on reforming the Senate's "lengthy rules of procedure" the day before was "designed to further divide our country." It is not surprising that the two factions have sparked a heated debate in American politics over whether to reform the "lengthy rules of procedure", but it is rare that Biden used "more offensive and partisan rhetoric" in his speech, which was broadcast on American radio. In the company's words, "Biden rang the New Year's bell in a campaign-style." Indeed, saddled with the embarrassment of the U.S. military being driven out of Afghanistan by the Taliban, facing the country’s highest inflation rate in 39 years, and the number of new coronary pneumonia cases increasing by the order of millions every day, Biden urgently needs to win a victory for the Democratic Party in 2022. The early election-style partisan division is worrying the American people. The latest poll shows that nearly 60% of Americans believe that American democracy is in danger of "collapse"; 53% of Americans expect that in their lifetime, the domestic political division in the United States will be divided. Deepening; 76% of Americans surveyed believe that instability in U.S. politics is “more dangerous than foreign threats.”
President criticized for 'deliberately sowing division'
Biden's speech in Georgia on the 11th called support for reforming the Senate's rules of procedure "a symbol of civil rights" and equated opponents with "segregationists and representatives of Southern slave owners." "Do you want to be on the side of Dr. King (Martin Luther King Jr.) or George Wallace (the segregationist)?" he said at this important historical moment. Abraham Lincoln's side, or Jefferson Davis' side?"
McConnell sharply criticized Biden's speech on Capitol Hill on the 12th as "roaring", "incoherent", "incorrect" and "incompatible with the identity of the president of the United States." "It's so -- so -- not a president." "I've known, liked, and respected Joe Biden for years. But I didn't recognize the guy on the podium yesterday," he added. , Biden's speech amounted to accusing "52 senators and millions of Americans who did not agree to reform the Senate rules of procedure". He criticized Biden for "destroying democracy" and for "deliberately creating division."
The fierce confrontation between the top figures of the two parties in the United States has naturally sparked a wider debate. Sharpton, a commentator for MSNBC in the United States, blasted Biden's speech on the 12th, saying that it was a speech that cursed the opposition "you will go to hell", rather than a speech that could win the support of voters. Democratic National Committee spokesman Moussa expressed solidarity with the president, calling McConnell's speech on the 12th a "hypocritical tantrum." "McConnell is leading Republicans in a ruthless war against protecting voting rights and hypocritically defending Senate rules, while President Biden and Democrats continue to fight to protect Americans' fundamental rights," Musa said.
The British "Daily Mail" said on the 13th that after being criticized by McConnell, Biden tried to meet and reach a reconciliation with the Republican leader on Capitol Hill on the 12th. But McConnell later confirmed that the two did not meet. Sen. Booker, a Democrat, told reporters that the president only spoke with staff at the front desk of McConnell's office.
Political survival or conflict transfer
Passing legislation in the Senate usually requires at least 60 votes, according to "lengthy rules of procedure." With Democrats and Republicans each holding 50 seats in the Senate, Biden wants to change the "lengthy rules of procedure" to a simple majority rule. That way, with all 50 Democratic senators united, Vice-President Harris, as Senate speaker, can pass any bill they want.
Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer announced on the 11th that the Senate will vote on the Free Elections Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Promotion Act before Martin Luther King Day on January 17. The two electoral bills, while backed by a majority, still lack 60 votes to defeat lawmakers who blocked the bills under "lengthy rules of procedure". If neither bill passes, Democrats will vote on changes to the "lengthy rules of procedure" on or before Jan. 17 to try to pass the two bills, Schumer said.
Russian political scientist Dudakov told Russia Today TV on the 13th that the American Democrats need such "innovation", and these two election bills are related to political survival for Biden and the Democratic Party. Nineteen U.S. states have passed 34 laws restricting voting, and Senator Durbin, the No. 2 Democrat in the Senate, said Republican-led states are "slowly taking step by step to ensure that fewer and fewer Americans are going to vote." What the Republican Party is doing today has "similarities" to what segregationists have done to disenfranchise black voters in the past, he said. Democrats are worried that if this continues, the results of the 2022 midterm elections are likely to be unfavorable to the Democratic Party. Coupled with the fact that several important Democratic proposals have recently failed to pass Congress, they hope to escort themselves by amending the rules.
Russia expert Drobnitsky said that if the Democratic Party can pass the electoral reform bill, "it will be a plan to turn the Republican Party into an eternal opposition, leaving it without any chance of returning to power."
However, Lv Xiang, an expert on American issues at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times reporter on the 13th that it would be difficult to revise the "lengthy rules of procedure". Although the revision of the rules only requires the approval of a majority of the Senate, Senate Democrats have There are also different opinions. Influential centrists, represented by Rep. Manchin of West Virginia and Rep. Sinema of Arizona, are unlikely to support such "unnecessary rule changes." Lv Xiang said that the original meaning of the "lengthy rules of procedure" is to protect minority parties and minorities. The Democratic Party used to use it frequently. Once it is abolished, when the Democratic Party becomes a minority, it will lose a tool.
Australia's "Financial Review," said that Biden was hit in the first year of his presidency, and the key mid-term elections are less than a year away. If there are no major events to inspire support, it may be difficult for Biden to Get out of the trough in 2021. What's more, there are still many problems facing him now - the highest inflation rate in 39 years, which has stimulated American households and lowered real wages; the humiliation of surrendering to the Taliban in Afghanistan; a long legislative impasse over a massive tax and spending plan; the new crown Pneumonia continues to rage; border immigration crisis; little progress on climate change, etc. "Biden needs a win in 2022."
Lu Xiang told the "Global Times" reporter: "Actually, the American people now want to hear more about his response to the epidemic, but he doesn't talk about real issues, and only uses these things to hype them up. This is typical partisan politics. s consequence".
What Americans fear more is the "enemy within"
NBC said on the 12th that Biden's two recent speeches portrayed himself as a core figure in a partisan battle for American survival, in which he repeated his campaign slogan, "for the Fight for the American Soul". "Biden is ringing the New Year's bell in a campaign-style because at this point he is at risk of losing influence if Democrats start seeing him as a lame duck." The report said that Biden's approval rating has fallen sharply recently, and the midterm elections are approaching, and many Democrats are questioning whether he can become their presidential candidate in 2024. Refocusing Democrats on their common opponent, the Republican Party, at this point may help counter perceptions that he is a "short-lived president."
The latest opinion poll released by Quinnipiac University in the United States on the 12th brought even worse news to Biden. The survey showed that only 33 percent of respondents said they approved of his work, while 53 percent said they did not. 49% of Americans believe that Biden has done more to divide, only 42% say he has done more to unite the country, and "unity" is what Biden did during the campaign, his victory speech and his inauguration Words that are repeated in a speech.
The poll also showed that one year after Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol, 58 percent said they believed American democracy was in danger of collapsing. When asked about the likelihood of another similar congressional attack on the U.S., 53 percent of respondents said it was very likely or likely. Although viewing China, Russia and other countries as threats and strengthening containment has become a rare bipartisan consensus in the United States, polls show that 76% of Americans say domestic political instability is more dangerous than foreign threats. "Americans' grim assessment of the dangers to democracy and the deepening of future political divisions is a fear of internal enemies, not external threats," said Quinnipiac University polling analyst Malloy. "
"The New York Times," said that no one can save the United States from a dangerous cliff. Trump's four-year presidency and a lingering pandemic have exhausted the United States, and so far the federal government has not responded as it should to the risks to American democracy and has done nothing to increase the number of 2024 Possibility of free and fair elections.
The British "Guardian" said that many people expressed disillusionment with American democracy. The angry, destructive specter was in the bottle long before the "defeated ex-President Trump" opened the cork. January 6, 2021, was a shocking riot, but more riots are likely to come before a solution to the contradictions in American society is found.
According to a report by CNN on the 12th, Canadian author Marsh wrote in his new book: "The United States is heading for the end of democracy." Canadian political scientist Dixon even gave a specific time: "American democracy It will collapse in 2025, causing extreme chaos in domestic politics, including widespread popular violence; by 2030, the country may be ruled by a right-wing dictatorship.” He also warned that Canada would be affected by the collapse of American democracy: “A terrible storm is coming from the south and Canada is unprepared."
