Biden resorts to gaslighting America because he's not terribly bright: Rep. Byron Donalds
Florida congressman reacts to the president ramping up his attacks on MAGA Republicans as midterms approach on 'America Reports.'
President Biden's version of "unity" as-pledged is actually autocracy, and when he is challenged, he usually resorts to fearmongering and "gaslighting," Florida Republican Congressman Byron Donalds told Fox News on Tuesday.
Donalds reacted to Biden demonizing so-called "MAGA Republicans" and appearing to initially backtrack somewhat from his Thursday address on Independence Mall in Philadelphia -- where he had doubled-down on assertions Trump supporters subscribe to "semi-fascism."
Biden, he said, "doesn't want unity" as promised in his Inauguration speech, but instead seeks "for every American to bend the knee to his agenda."
"What these Senate Democrats want is for you to do the same. They don't want competition," Donalds said on "America Reports." "They don't want debate. They want to actually squelch and put down free speech. That's why they're working with social media companies to stop Americans from actually communicating on a myriad of topics, including COVID-19."
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Florida GOP Rep. Byron Donalds called out President Biden for being "untruthful" to Americans. (AP)
"So this is where we are. People need to understand this – Joe Biden's idea of unity is you do it his way, and then you don't challenge him."
Donalds said every time someone – whether a reporter or civilian – challenges Biden he resorts to "yelling" and pointed rhetoric.
"He starts pointing fingers. That's not leadership. That's demagoguery. That's actually an autocrat," he added. "And if you look at his actions, whether he was talk about student loans or the fact that he ignores immigration law or anything else in between, this man does not care about the Constitution or the rule of law. Actually, Republicans do."
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Democrat John K. Fetterman and Republican Mehmet C. Oz. (Michelle Gustafson/Bloomberg/Alexi Rosenfeld via Getty Images)
The president has had several such instances, including a 2019 Iowa campaign event where he called a voter a "damned liar" for questioning reports the then-candidate knew of or helped son Hunter Biden attain overseas business.
"You said I set up my son to work in an oil company. Isn’t that what you said? Get your words straight, Jack," he fumed.
In 2012, Biden visited a largely-Black crowd near Martinsville, Va, where he declared then-Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney's fiscal policy platform would put the attendees "back in chains."
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PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - SEPTEMBER 01: U.S. President Joe Biden delivers speech at Independence National Historical Park September 1, 2022 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Donalds said the infamous "chains" remarks was par for the course with the president, calling it another example of "gaslighting" while under criticism.
The Florida congressman claimed Pennsylvania Democratic senatorial nominee John K. Fetterman, the Commonwealth's current lieutenant governor, is following Biden's mold of "gaslighting" and distracting from key issues with rhetoric.
"John Fetterman in Pennsylvania does the same thing. This kind of demonizing, this kind of gaslighting, as opposed to debating his opponent," he said, adding the lieutenant governor should finally agree to Republican opponent Mehmet Oz' debate invitations.
The race to replace Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., has been tightening, and the two have exchanged barbs over the proper terminology for vegetable hors d'oeuvres – after Oz posted a video from a supermarket decrying inflation under Biden – and whether Oz's past residency in neighboring New Jersey should preclude him from serious contention.
The Florida lawmaker said Democrats want to make Trump the main issue in the midterm elections to distract from their failures, quipping that most voters "want to go back to 2019 America" – citing low energy costs, a growing economy and a secure Mexican border.
"But going back to Joe Biden, listen, this is the deal with him. He always does this when he's not getting his way because the man is not terribly bright," Donalds added.
"He's obviously wrong when it comes to all the issues facing America. And he's never actually had to hold a job in the real world and actually live up to the consequences of what he has actually done. It's time for America to turn the page."