Former President Joe Biden railed against his successor in a fiery speech, in which he accused Trump of trying to ‘dismantle the Constitution.’
The ex president had been invited to speak at the National Bar Association’s 100th annual gala at the Hyatt in Chicago on Thursday, when he was awarded the historically black organization’s highest award.
He never mentioned President Trump by name, but made obvious swipes at his successor as he warned that the United States is facing ‘dark days’ and claimed that the Trump administration is engaged in ‘an existential fight with minority communities’ amid ongoing ICE raids.
‘He seems to be doing his best to dismantle the constitution,’ Biden told the room of black judges, lawyers and law students – arguing that Trump is ‘doing it all too often with the help of a Congress that’s just sitting in the sidelines and enabled by the highest court in the nation.’
Biden then went on to claim that the United States is at a turning point, as he argued the Trump administration is trying to ‘ease all the gains we’ve made in my administration.
‘To erase history, rather than make it. To erase fairness, equality, to erase justice itself,’ he said. ‘And that’s not hyperbole. That’s a fact.’
‘Folks, in all our lives, the life of our nation, there are moments so stark that they divide all that came before from everything that followed – moments that forced us to confront hard truths about ourselves, our institutions and democracy itself,’ he continued.
‘We are in my view, at such a moment in American history, reflected in every cruel executive outreach, every rollback of basic freedoms, every erosion of longstanding established precedent.’
The former president then seemed to call on those in the room to stand against the Trump administration as he emphasized the importance of the court system.
‘Judges matter, courts matter, the law matters and the Constitution matters,’ Biden proclaimed.
‘I think a lot of Americans are starting to realize that under the pressure [we’re] under now with this guy we have as president.’
He also called out ‘law firms bowing to pressure, bending to bullies, instead of staying rooted in justice and the law’ as big name firms agree to settlements with the president..
‘Folks, we can’t sugarcoat this. These are dark days, but you’re all here for the same reason I left that prestigious law firm to go to the public defender’s office years ago. It’s because our future is literally on the line and we must be unapologetic of fighting for the future.’
Wrapping up his speech, Biden encouraged the audience to ‘summon the courage’ to stand up for what is right.
‘It means take the client who can’t write a big check, but needs protecting their basic fundamental rights. It means signing onto that brief that may draw the ire of people in power, but you know it’s the right thing to do,’ he said.
‘It means standing firm against unconstitutional actions designed to intimidate you. It means write the article, give the speech, lead the protest, defend the ideas your country is founded on, to protect your institutions, to fight for the soul of the nation.’
The National Bar Association – which was formed when the American Bar Association barred black attorneys from joining its ranks – said Biden’s appearance ‘underscores his ongoing efforts to strengthen the rule of law, defend voting rights and support historically marginalized communities.’
Daily Mail has reached out to the Trump administration for comment.