Much has been made about President Joe Biden's divisive speech from outside of Independence Hall in Philadelphia last Thursday night, including and especially when it comes to the use of Marines in the background. Even CNN took issue with that aspect of his speech. As our friends at Twitchy highlighted, even The Washington Post highlighted criticism of their presence. Making the presence of Marines worse is how much of a hypocrite it makes Biden, considering as a candidate he promised he would "never" use the military as a "prop."
Fox News' Houston Keene highlighted such a promise from Biden made on August 29, 2020. While addressing the virtual National Guard Association of the United States' 142nd General Conference, he told them "I promise you as president, I'll never put you in the middle of politics or personal vendettas. I'll never use the military as a prop or as a private militia to violate the rights of fellow citizens. That’s not law and order. You don't deserve that."
The White House clumsily attempted to defend Biden's speech. During Friday's press briefing, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre claimed it was "not political" and even said that the presence of Marines was "intended to demonstrate the deep and abiding respect has for these service members, to these ideals and the unique role our independent military plays in defending our democracy."
KJP: "The presence of the marines at the speech was intended to demonstrate the deep and abiding respect has for these service members, to these ideals and the unique role our independent military plays in defending our democracy." pic.twitter.com/BhT4L7UEIt
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) September 2, 2022
The president and his supporters have sought to frame the speech as being about "defending our democracy" which is supposedly under attack from the "extremist threat" of MAGA Republicans.
Sparking further controversy about the speech is how the president, from his official account, continued to retweet parts of his speech over the weekend, including a graphic. Tellingly, it was done from a side angle so as to not emphasize the lighting which made Biden look as if he were out of a scene from "V for Vendetta" or in Soviet Russia or Nazi Germany.
Notice the side angle shot? ??
— Adam B. Coleman, President of Aintblackistan (@wrong_speak) September 3, 2022
We know also may know more about who is responsible for the content of Biden's speech. George Washington Law Professor Jonathan Turley tweeted out that it was reportedly written by John Meacham, citing an article from POLITICO.
...We previously discussed Professor Meacham's history test that asked “Was the Constitution designed to perpetuate white supremacy and protect the institution of slavery?” A student who answered "false" was marked wrong. https://t.co/OZkPV7CkSa
— Jonathan Turley (@JonathanTurley) September 4, 2022