On Thursday evening, Joe Biden delivered the most disgusting speech any president has given since televised national addresses began. It was demagogic, it was filled with falsehoods, and it set out to paint half the nation as inherently threatening to the very foundation of the republic.

The visuals were no better, with Biden standing in front of a blood-red background, flanked by military members, as he ranted about the dangers of Americans who are pro-life, among other things. That he was also front-lit in a way that made him look like Mussolini only added to the spectacle. The speech was something more, though.

It was bait.

Joe Biden is a senile old man bolstered by years of radical ideology, but he’s not an evil mastermind. He’s a cosplaying coward, faced with a mountain of failures of his own making desperately looking for a way to distract the eye of the American people. That speech wasn’t meant to lay the groundwork for shipping Republicans off to camps. It was meant to turn the conversation from the economy, the border, and the nation’s disastrous foreign policy to a slap fight about “democracy.”

After all, nothing gets the left going more than hearing someone say “our democracy is in danger.” It’s like catnip to them. Take this recent headline from The Washington Post as an example.

WaPo editorial on Biden Philly speech: “Democracy is in danger. Biden should invoke patriotism, not partisanship, to make that point.” https://t.co/VruoCQoJX3

— Josh Kraushaar (@JoshKraushaar) September 3, 2022

The reality is that our democracy is not in danger. It was not in danger on January 6th, no matter what your feelings on the riot are, and it is certainly not in danger in September of 2022. That narrative is being pushed for one reason: To help Democrats headed into the mid-terms. It is not a serious critique of the current situation, it is a cynical ploy by a man who can’t afford for people to pay attention to his record.

Biden wants to have the national conversation to be centered on “MAGA Republicans” and a supposed fight over “the soul of the nation.” The worst thing Republicans could do is overcorrect in response to his ridiculous speech, giving him exactly what he wants. This isn’t the time to lash out, escalate our language, and play into the caricature Democrats falsely paint of the GOP just in time to alienate voters before the mid-terms. Rather, it’s the time to point and laugh in the face of these lunatics while making sure the president isn’t let off the hook.

Biden is a deranged clown. He’s been a joke his entire career, and that hasn’t changed with him in the White House. His delusions of grandeur as a great statesman only bolster that fact. The way to beat him is to not play his game and to deliver a resounding defeat to his party. Do that, and there won’t be enough popcorn in existence to enjoy the meltdown.