Joseph R. Biden was sworn in today as the 46th president of the United States, the culmination of more than a half-century of ambition. I attended the last two presidential inaugurations in person, and I’ve seen every living president (there’s now six), but of course, that was impossible this time around due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Biden was forced to address a small, socially-distanced crowd while a sea of little flags stretched out in front of him. It looked a bit like the Veteran’s Day memorial I once saw in Boston. The effect was powerful, but the symbolism conjured up a vast graveyard.
The pageantry of events like these are always awe-inspiring to behold, regardless of the man or the circumstances. A small bright spot was Garth Brooks bear-hugging George W. Bush, a man for whom I will always hold great affection. Trump did not attend (although Mike Pence did), but the entire event had the sort of dignity and solemnity that these things usually have. Biden gave the inaugural address we all expected, appealing to unity and marshalling the heritage of America and the nostalgia of Americans to present himself as the man for the moment and promising a new, brighter future ahead. It was an effective speech, all things considered.
It all appeared so normal, and in many ways it was. But that, of course, is the problem. On social media, abortion industry executives and LGBT activists could not contain their glee, issuing a flurry of press releases to announce the impending fulfilment of Biden’s promises to them. Longevity, unfortunately, is not normality. Biden’s speech hit the right notes—and I, like so many others, have wished for four long years that Trump was capable of that sort of discipline and dignity. If he was, he’d undoubtedly still be president. But for all that, Biden is a Trojan horse. He looks good—harmless, even—but his presidency will be a cover for the sexual revolutionaries who began their project decades ago and were briefly interrupted in 2016.
Biden, who is the sort of Catholic who can advocate for the destruction of pre-born children hours after attending church and taking Communion, understands that America is a very religious nation, and thus took pains to appeal to the republic’s mystic chords of memory. He quoted St. Augustine on common loves; he appealed to Scripture; he called on God. Garth Brooks sang Amazing Grace, and the progressive pagans on the dais wept as he finished. Kamala Harris, of course, wasn’t hearing the same words as Mike Pence. It isn’t sin that made the Democrats wretched—it was the loss of power. It was Trump they longed to be saved from. The evils that tempt God’s wrath are part of the Democratic platform.
The religious beliefs of Biden, Harris, and their accomplices are as much a bastardization of Christianity as the weird prayers of the shirtless Viking QAnon shaman who stormed the Capitol on January 6. They drape child-killing, sexual chaos, and radicalism in a Christian cloak, and assure America that this is merely a “return to norms.” It looks convincing at a glance—so long as you don’t peer too closely at what they’re doing. (Incidentally, QAnon followers were melting down on social media as they realized that they’ve been lied to. I desperately hope the spell has been broken now that reality has so rudely intruded.) Biden is president. More babies will die as a result. Religious liberty will be curtailed. The fact that the Democrats believe this is “normal” is a horrifying reflection on their view of America.
President Joe Biden announced a new chapter in American history. We can only pray that it will not be what he intends it to be.
