U.S. President Joe Biden's speech in Philadelphia, expected to focus on the "soul of the nation" and how "MAGA Republicans" pose an "extremist threat to our democracy," is scheduled to begin at 8:00 pm ET.
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MAGA stands for Make America Great Again, which was a 2016 campaign slogan of former President Donald Trump.
Asked about the prime-time address on Wednesday, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters that "the way that he sees it is the MAGA Republicans are the most energized part of the Republican Party" and "this is an extreme threat to our democracy, to our freedom, to our rights."
"They just don't respect the rule of law. You've heard that from the president. And, you know, they are pursuing an agenda that takes away people's rights," she continued, adding that Biden won't shy away from calling out "what he clearly sees is happening in this country."
The speech comes just over two months before the midterm elections and as a new analysis revealed that major U.S. companies and corporate lobbying groups have given almost $25 million to Republican lawmakers since they voted to overturn the 2020 presidential election following the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Biden's address also comes as Trump--whose "Big Lie" that Democrats stole the 2020 election helped provoke last year's attack--continues to endorse candidates running this year and spark speculation that he'll run for the White House in 2024, despite being the target of various ongoing investigations.
Christine Wood and Allison Pulliam, co-directors of the Declaration for American Democracy--a coalition of nearly 250 organizations--said in a statement Thursday that "President Biden will remind Americans that dangerous extremist politicians and secret money groups who aim to block progress on the big issues that matter remain at large."
"As we quickly approach midterm elections, where so much is at stake, these forces continue to act in bad faith to restrict our freedom to vote and inject more money than ever into our politics," they added. "We commend President Biden for reiterating the importance of protecting and strengthening democracy. We are hopeful that the president will use the full power of his presidency to act, as a select few senators continue to stall transformative federal legislation that would guarantee the right to vote."
This post has been updated with comment from Declaration for American Democracy.
