The end of Donald Trump’s dysfunctional tenure in the White House means the start of a relatively normal presidency under Joe Biden. But what does normal even mean after four years of a presidency and a president that have been anything but?
Biden emphasized unity in his inaugural address in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, the dangerous scourge of misinformation and bitter partisan divisions in modern-day America:
“To overcome these challenges, to restore the soul and secure the future of America, requires so much more than words and requires the most elusive of all things in a democracy: unity.”
According to the charging affidavit, Gieswein was a member of a domestic militia called the Three Percenters which advocates for gun rights. Federal prosecutors say the man also ran a paramilitary training group called the Woodland Wild Dogs.
Gieswein entered the Capitol complex in paramilitary training garb camouflage and an Army helmet and a reinforced military-style vest.
In a video posted about the break-in, Gieswein allegedly said he wanted to get “corrupt politicians out of office. Pelosi, the Clintons, all of … every single one of them, Biden, Kamala … they have completely destroyed our country and sold them to the Rothschilds and Rockefellers.”
The U.S. illustrates this week that changing a nation's leader without rethinking the system he or she is upholding is no longer acceptable for citizens. We need an improved form of democracy.