The president did not air grievances or dwell on the past, but sounded an alarm call about the future under Trump
There was a sting in the tail. Joe Biden’s farewell address had not seemed like a must-watch for most politics-weary Americans. Those who did dutifully tune in might have been expecting the president to deliver a yawn-inducing first draft of his White House memoir.
But after more than half a century in elected office, the 82-year-old great-grandfather had one last surprise. The primetime speech did not mention Donald Trump by name. Instead it will be remembered for its dark, ominous warning about something wider and deeper of which Trump is a symptom.