Less than two weeks after the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump, calls to lower the political temperature were vociferously tossed aside Wednesday evening when Joe Biden addressed the nation from the Oval Office.Biden — whose shocking decision to drop out of the 2024 presidential campaign and throw his support behind Kamala Harris has stunned the nation and world — offered virtually no explanation for his change of heart, leaving more questions than answers.It’s time for sanity, the taming of the tongue, and smarter politics.But beyond that, Biden also did something else — a deeply troubling move in the wake of a violent and turbulent election cycle: He again framed the 2024 campaign as an existential battle for America’s survival.“It’s been the honor of my life to serve as your president,” he said. “But in the defense of democracy, which is at stake, I think it’s more important than any title.”At a time when the political temperatures are scorching, Biden told the nation that the “defense of democracy” is essential, because, from his vantage point, it is “at stake.”Again — just days after gun violence rocked the 2024 campaign and claimed the life of Corey Comperatore, a man attending Donald Trump’s rally — Biden chose to use terror and fear to score political points while elevating himself and his party to hero status. This “defense of democracy” language suggests that Trump, if he wins in November, will somehow destroy America and its structural underpinnings. Far from a mere mention uttered in passing, Biden went on to express the same idea in different forms throughout the speech.“I believe my record as president, my leadership in the world, my vision for America’s future all merited a second term,” Biden continued. “But nothing, nothing can come in the way of saving our democracy, and that includes personal ambition.”Once more, the “saving our democracy” language emerged, sending an unsubtle message to an already fearful and inflation-riddled electorate that our nation could somehow be lost if the Democratic Party doesn’t hold onto power.At the end of the speech, the president concluded by hammering home the same narrative, urging the nation to “preserve our democracy” by listening to him and voting for Kamala Harris.Such proclamations might seem benign, but they are anything but. At a time when citizens are ginned up into an almost incessant panic, the claim that the 2024 election is a choice between demolishing democracy and choosing someone who will defend it is, at best, unhelpful — and, at worst, dangerous.After the attempted assassination of Trump, Biden himself stressed the need to “lower the temperature in our politics,” but his “defend democracy” language does anything but temper those storms. Instead, it pours gasoline on the already raging fires of consternation in this nation.Some, like Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine), recently encouraged people on both sides of the political divide to stop using these sinister tactics.“We can start by dropping hyperbolic threats about the stakes of this election,” he said in a July 14 post on X (formerly Twitter). “It should not be misleadingly portrayed as a struggle between democracy or authoritarianism, or a battle against fascists or socialists bent on destroying America. These are dangerous lies.”And yet those “dangerous lies” were once again on display Wednesday night. Golden is right to call us to stop going to the lowest common denominator to try to win elections.Trump, too, is back to name-calling, lashing out at “Crooked Joe Biden and Lyin’ Kamala Harris,” calling them a “great embarrassment to America” and proclaiming “there has never been a time like this.”But the truth is, the 2024 race is a battle over ideology and the future. Like all elections, it’s a debate over which party has a better vision for moving the nation forward, protecting the borders, providing economic opportunity, and offering possibilities to live out the American dream.Democracy isn’t on the chopping block, and it’s unfortunate Biden and others continue to use such divisive and dangerous language — especially at a time when the nation is still trying to find its footing following the attempted assassination.Golden also spoke of how efforts for “short-term political gain” lead to exaggerations of differences and make political opponents appear as “diabolical caricatures bent on destroying the country.”Not only does this force us to see ideological opponents as enemies, but Golden said it can lead us to experience violence and instability.“The result is an overwhelming sense of fear [and] anxiety about the future of our country, where the normal and tested tools of democracy no longer seem adequate to protect the common good,” he continued. “In this light, a rise of politically motivated violence in America is sadly unsurprising.”It’s time for sanity, the taming of the tongue, and smarter politics. We must call on all candidates to step up to the plate, stop leeching off Americans’ emotions, and win elections on the merits of their own ideas and policies — not on trumped-up fear and consternation.

NFL legend Tom Brady had a very not-safe-for-work reaction when asked to sign the jersey of fellow NFL great Eli Manning.Brady is widely considered to be the best NFL player of all time, pulling in a whopping seven Super Bowl victories. Playing in 10 Super Bowls in total, Brady had a record of 7-3. Two of those losses were to Manning, who played for the New York Giants: Super Bowl XLII in 2008 and Super Bowl XLVI in 2012.The first loss even ruined the New England Patriots' perfect season, giving Brady plenty of reason for a sour taste in his mouth.Recently, the NFL revealed footage of Brady sitting at a table signing a number of his jerseys from his time playing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.As Brady is signing away on the pile of No. 12 jerseys, a jersey is pulled away to reveal a No. 10 Manning jersey from the Giants. After giving a blank stare at the merchandise handler, Brady decided to sign it anyway."Tom Brady was asked to sign an Eli Manning jersey," the onscreen caption read.The camera pans and then zooms in on the back of the jersey, where Brady appeared to sign "F*** off" right on the numbers.Then, Manning was shown the jersey as he got ready to sign it himself. "Beautiful," he said as he laughed uncomfortably, reading the message."I don't know what...I'll sign here. What do I say to this?" he murmured."I'll say 'good game,'" he added, giving an awkward look to the camera. @nfl at least he signed it ? (via @Fanatics) #elimanning #tombrady #nfl ♬ original sound - NFL "At least he signed it," the NFL wrote on its TikTok page.Despite being out of the NFL for nearly two years, Brady has consistently faced questions surrounding a possible return. He has stated himself that he isn't opposed to a comeback should the right team come knocking.Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Davante Adams recently said that he still believes Brady would be an effective quarterback in the league."He's getting older, but I mean he's still got to be able to throw it better than half these dudes in the league."As for Manning, he is long retired since playing just four games in 2019. He routinely hosts the "Manningcast" with his brother Petyon on ESPN, where they watch and comment on NFL games on Monday nights.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

The elderly man who was run down by an ATV driver in an apparently politically motivated attack in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan last weekend is back home and recovering, cops say, and the identity of the suspect in the case has now been released.Last Sunday, a suspect driving an ATV unleashed a show of rage against signs and images supporting law enforcement and/or former President Donald Trump, as Blaze News previously reported. The suspect apparently damaged tire valves, smashed windows, and even tore off a mirror on at least two vehicles sporting Trump or "thin blue line" stickers in Hancock, Michigan, a small city at the base of the Keweenaw Peninsula, the stretch of land in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan that juts out into Lake Superior.'We’re looking into the media devices and hoping that we find some indication in those devices themselves as to what his mindset would have been.'In addition to the acts of vandalism, the ATV driver also targeted an 80-year-old Hancock man who had Trump signs posted on his front lawn. First, the driver tore the signs down. When the man attempted to put them back up, the ATV driver ran him down from behind, causing serious injuries, reportedly including a brain bleed.The Hancock Police Department has since shared a promising update about the victim and his condition. He was released from the hospital on Wednesday night and "will be recovering at home," the police statement said.Hancock Police Chief Tami Sleeman called the victim's improvement "really good news."In the press release, the department also revealed the name of the suspect: Joshua Kemppainen, a 22-year-old resident of Quincy Township, just north of Hancock.On Monday, Hancock police received a call from an individual believed to be Kemppainen. The caller wanted to "confess a crime involving an ATV driver within the last 24 hours" and asked cops to come pick him up.When deputies and officers arrived at the Quincy residence associated with the caller, they found Kemppainen dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. On his property, they found the ATV believed to have struck the elderly Hancock man as well as clothing that matched clothes seen on surveillance images of the ATV driver. They also confiscated some digital devices that will be passed along for forensic analysis at the Michigan State Crime Lab in Marquette."We did not find any notes or anything like that at this point," said Houghton County Sheriff Josh Saaranen. "We’re looking into the media devices and hoping that we find some indication in those devices themselves as to what his mindset would have been, or his MO."Kemppainen "had no prior known contacts with local law enforcement," the police press release said.In the wake of the apparently politically motivated attacks, Sheriff Saaranen called for unity. "We don’t have to agree with each other at all times," he said, "but we as a community need to come together."Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

While we're usually made to wait until a game has been released to find out whether it works on Steam Deck, Bioware has jumped the gun and announced that Dragon Age: The Veilguard will be Verified at launch. It's no surprise that Bioware is targeting great performance on the best handheld gaming PC as it's the style of game that totally lends itself to portable play. However, it's very surprising to see it announced before the Dragon Age: The Veilguard release date. Continue reading Dragon Age Veilguard is already Steam Deck verified MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best RPGs, Dragon Age 4 characters, Dragon Age 4 release date

Team FOLON has done something incredible. After five years of arduous work, the development team behind unofficial spin-off Fallout London has actually managed to finish and release its ambitious RPG. With Fallout 5 a long way off and everyone eager for something fresh after New Vegas and FO4, this new fan game (that almost feels like too small a descriptor) is very, very welcome. By all accounts, fans of the apocalyptic Bethesda series are loving its new UK-based half cousin. At the same time, a lot of Fallout London crashing problems are getting in the way. Continue reading Fallout London crashing problems are hurting an otherwise great game MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Fallout 5 release date, Best games like Fallout, Best Fallout 4 mods

It's time for another incredible Steam Deck game bundle from Fanatical. This time, you can add up to 22 games to a deal at $7 each. The bundle would cost $632.29, but instead, it can be yours for $153.96. But fear not, if you don't want or need 22 games to add to your backlog, there is still a way to buy fewer games and still save big. We even have an exclusive discount code that will save you more money, which we will detail below. More developers are targeting Steam Deck verification as the best handheld gaming PC continues to dominate the market despite its aging power. Many of these games will also run great on devices like the Asus ROG Ally X too. Continue reading Save up to $469 in this Steam Deck game bundle builder MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Best graphics card, Best gaming PC, Best SSD for gaming

Fresh news on the Terraria 1.4.5 update is something I’ll always take a moment for, and as the end of the month rolls around once more, the Terraria State of the Game for July 2024 has arrived to deliver just that. Developer Re-Logic has a couple of new treats for us, as one of the best PC games ever looks towards the launch of what might, finally, actually, become its ultimate update. Continue reading Terraria 1.4.5 adds a powerful new weapon and a delightful novelty MORE FROM PCGAMESN: The best Terraria mods, Terraria happiness guide, Terraria bosses guide

What are the current and upcoming Marvel Rivals events? There is an entire multiverse worth of story going on in Marvel Rivals, with everything happening everywhere all at once; stopping Spider Zero from pushing the cart is only good enough until the next round starts, and we know that those screaming goats will be back, win or lose. Luckily, there are story events that have a fixed start and end point, and even better, they come with a ton of rewards. Players are sinking their teeth into the Marvel Rivals closed beta, getting to grips with each of the Marvel Rivals characters before the official Marvel Rivals release date rolls by. We have the current and upcoming Marvel Rivals events here so you can be prepared when the time comes, ready to grind for those exclusive rewards. Continue reading Marvel Rivals events - all current and upcoming events MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Marvel Rivals release date, Marvel Rivals characters, Marvel Rivals System Requirements

THIS! Mary Katharine Ham DROPS Media Toads Trying to Make Trump Into a Coward for Refusing Kamala Debate

Is Sen. Mark Kelly Trying to Buy His Way Onto the Kamala Harris Ticket?