OPINION:
Joe Biden is now calling for harmony. This follows a long career of criticizing, insulting and demonizing Republicans. Perhaps the most memorable quotation was he told Black Americans, of the GOP: “They’re gonna put y’all back in chains.” Clearly comments like this do not engender harmony or amity.
For many years, Joe Biden, Barack Obama and numerous other Democrats avoided discussions of the ideas and policy proposals of Republicans. Reasoned arguments as to why the Democrats’ ideas were better were rarely or never put forward. Instead, Democrats implied and sometimes actually said their Republican opposition was evil, cruel, greedy, racist and selfish. The claim was that under Republican governance the rich would grow richer as the poor and minorities suffered. And this would make the Republicans happy. Such characterization makes Republicans sounds pretty much like the devil.
Normally when a person offends another person the proper thing for the offender to do is apologize. As a first step, Joe Biden should apologize to Republicans for his previous demonization of them. He should announce that people should be able to discuss policy differences in a civil manner.
ARTHUR HORN
Fort Lee, N.J.
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