Former President of the United States Joe Biden called the present “dark days”. He urged Americans to remain optimistic and not succumb to President Donald Trump’s attacks on free speech and testing of the limits of executive power. TASR writes about it according to the AP agency.
- Joe Biden said that these are ‘dark days’ in the US.
- He emphasized the importance of American values and limited presidential power.
- He condemned Trump’s threats to freedom of speech.
Biden, 82, addressed an audience in Boston on Sunday night after receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Edward M. Kennedy Institute. It was his first public appearance since undergoing a course of radiotherapy for an aggressive form of prostate cancer.
Preserving American values
“Since its founding, America has served as a beacon for the most powerful idea ever to rule the history of the world,” Biden said. “This idea is stronger than any army. We are stronger than any dictator,” the ex-president recalled.
He said America depends on a limited-power presidency, a functioning Congress and an autonomous judiciary. With the federal government facing the second-longest shutdown in history, Trump has used the funding cuts as a way to assert new control over the government.
A call for unity
“My friends, I can’t sugarcoat any of this. These are dark days,” Biden said. According to him, the country will “find its true compass again” and “come out (of the crisis) as it has always been – stronger, wiser and more resilient, more just, as long as we keep the faith.”
Biden cited the comedians Trump targeted as examples of people who will stand up to the current administration’s threats. “Evening show hosts continue to point to free speech knowing their careers are at stake,” he said. He urged Americans to “stand up again.”
Biden’s health challenges
The Democratic president withdrew his bid for re-election last year after a debate failure against Trump and concerns about his age, health and mental fitness. He was replaced by Vice President Kamala Harris, who was unsuccessful in the November election.
Biden announced in May that doctors had diagnosed him with prostate cancer that had spread to his bones. The severity of prostate cancer is graded using what’s known as a Gleason score, which ranges from 6 to 10. Biden’s office said his score was a 9.
At the beginning of September, he underwent the so-called Mohs surgery to remove skin tumors. It was a procedure where layers of skin are removed until no trace of cancer remains.
