It wouldn't surprise me if Joe Biden's speechwriters have already written a speech like this for him.
I hope it never becomes necessary for him to deliver it.
I wish to speak to all members of the armed services, of which I am Commander-in-Chief, but not only to them. Tonight I want to speak to all Americans.
As you probably know, a certain individual, this One Individual has publicly boasted that he had military support for a government takeover.
Leaving aside the carelessness of his frankly idiotic remarks, it is pretty clear that this One Individual fails to recognize something, and it's something pretty darned important.
And that is this:
There are a lot more people who are loyal to the United States Constitution and to this Republic than he thinks.
For starters: Everybody who works for the federal government takes an oath or affirmation. Now, for simplicity's sake, I'm simply going to say "oaths"; but what I say applies also to affirmations.
But I mean it: everybody in the federal government takes an oath. The president takes an oath. The vice president takes an oath. Members of Congress take oaths. Members of the armed services take oaths. Civil servants take oaths.
And it's not just the federal government. The States administer oaths up and down the line.
And all lawyers take oaths, people who apply for passports, it goes on and on.
And nearly all of those oaths include a phrase like this, although the exact wording may differ; the person taking the oath promises to "uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States of America."
Now, I'm not going to give you a complicated constitutional lecture here.
I just want you to understand this (and, oh, by the way, anyone who actually bothers to actually read the Constitution would see that what I say is true):
The United States Constitution sets forth the way by which our leaders are selected. There is no provision in the United States Constitution for change of leadership by use of force, military or otherwise.
Most patriots know that. Not all, but most do.
But, you know what? Guaranteed, one hundred percent guaranteed, traitors know it. They know that they cannot achieve power UNLESS they resort to violence. The Constitution stands in their way.
Well, now, let's talk a little now about something else. Let's talk about the Pledge of Allegiance.
A lot of us have recited the Pledge of Allegiance. Some of us, thousands of times, and that's no exaggeration.
And when we pledged, we promised our deepest loyalty to the flag, but not only to the flag, we also promised our sacred loyalty to the Republic for which that flag stands.
Now, some people may not be able to give a dictionary definition of a "republic"; but it is basically this, folks:
In a republic, leaders represent the people, and act on behalf of the people in matters of government, and these leaders are chosen by the people. That's pretty much what a "republic" is.
But even if you couldn't give a casual definition of what a republic is (and some people may want to quibble with my definition, too, but never mind all that right now), here's something that I think we could all agree on:
A republic, no matter how you define it, is NOT a dictatorship. A republic is NOT a junta. A government taken by force is NOT a government with representatives chosen by the people.
So what I think that One Individual doesn't understand is this:
Any person who uses force or threat of force in order to achieve power is an enemy of the United States Constitution. Any person who wants to interfere violently with the way we choose our leaders and that refuses to recognize the will of the people, that person is an enemy of a republic.
No two ways about it.
That One Individual underestimates the people of this country.
He thinks that people will simply break their solemn promises if he simply tells them to do so.
And I am telling him right now:
A lot more people than you think, an overwhelming majority of the people, when they said the words of that oath, when they recited the words of that Pledge, when they said those words, they meant them. And they meant them for life. They did not mean that they meant those words only until something that they might like better comes along.
Now, I want to say a few words especially to those of you in military service.
I know the quality of the people that serve in the US Armed Forces.
They are second to none.
Let me be clear. I won't order any of you to support and defend the US Constitution, and do you know why?
Because I know I don't have to.
But I do want to share with you something that a member of the armed services said to me. She told me: "When I took that oath, I meant it for life; and if I thought otherwise, if I thought that my oath was only binding on me while I was in the service, then I would not be a patriot. I would be nothing more than a goddamned mercenary, who said the words of that oath only because I needed a job and a paycheck."
And I know a lot of you feel the same way:
You don't see service to your country as an inconvenience; you see it as an honor.
You don't hold to the notion that "Well, I will support the Constitution until I decide that I just don't want to do that anymore."
But this One Individual... that is what he thinks; he thinks solemn oaths and promises are unimportant, and can be discarded upon a whim.
And he thinks a lot of you are just like he is.
He thinks many of you aren't loyal to the United States Constitution, not really.
He thinks that most of you didn't really mean it when you promised your allegiance to the Republic.
And in so doing, he disrespects you.
He couldn't disrespect you more if he had come right up to you, and spat right in your face.
He insults you to your core.
He thinks--he REALLY thinks--you really care more about HIM than you care about the United States Constitution; he thinks you care more about HIM than you care about our Republic; and he thinks you care more about HIM than you care about your own sacred honor.
Well, he is wrong. Wrong on every count.
Most people in this country are loyal to the Constitution. Most people in the country are loyal to the Republic. And all of the Patriots in the armed services know damned well that they serve honorably, in order to make this country, this Republic, stronger and better.
And that's why so many of you are working your asses off to support and defend the Constitution, and make this a better Republic.
This One Individual, he doesn't understand that.
He has even said so in public. He was absolutely baffled by the notion that thousands of patriots would risk lives for their country.
You know what he said?
Referring to members of the armed services who had given their lives to protect their country, he said: "I don't get it. What was in it for them?"
Can you imagine a genuine patriot saying anything like that?
He doesn't understand service to country.
He doesn't understand the very concept of honor.
And for this One Individual even to suggest that HE is more important than Constitution, republic, and honor... is simply vacuous beyond belief.
Oh, and for the benefit of that One Individual, "vacuous" means... "stupid."
Good night, and may God bless us all.