It should be clear to all that the state of the Union and our democracy itself is crumbling around us. The time has come for President Biden to put aside delusions of bipartisanship and forcefully call out the GOP for its soul-deadening and unforgivable master plan to take and hold power at any cost.

Since Mitch McConnell demanded that congressional Republicans unite by stifling President Obama on everything — even things Republicans supported — in order to regain power, the GOP has dropped any pretense of having any other priorities. The GOP no longer has a party platform. They have zero stated goals for the future of America. Wake up, America. There is a crazed elephant in the room and it will likely destroy our democracy.

Donald Trump created a cult following and he schemed to establish autocratic rule. Along the way he daily tweeted hate and misinformation. He ignored and trashed many conventions that many people had thought were enshrined in law. GOP legislators fell in line in mindless obedience and abandoned any ethical principles they may have once had.

Wake up, America. This is not just politics as usual.

Throughout this early phase of the GOP’s coup d’etat, Fox News fanned the flames of hate and antigovernment discontent in the manner of Hitler’s propaganda machine with success that would make Joseph Goebbels envious. The Nazis proved that a determined misinformation campaign can convince people to do anything, even murder millions of their neighbors.

Trump saw possible defeat coming and spread unsubstantiated fears of voter fraud far in advance of the 2020 election. After his election loss, the GOP has universally adopted his Big Lie about a stolen election and excused the staged Jan. 6 insurrection as a patriotic protest. Now state legislatures controlled by the GOP are enacting controls to steal future elections.

This is serious. Not to be deeply alarmed is to naïvely cling to the chimeric belief that it couldn’t possibly happen here.

After the election loss, in order to retake power, the GOP has worked to block all of Biden’s programs. Tragically, they also saw political value in prolonging the COVID pandemic chaos and got fully behind the anti-vaxx movement to ensure the U.S. response would falter. In Goebbels’ style, they accepted the unnecessary deaths of 100,000 Americans.

The Democratic Party has failed miserably in combating the misinformation and has not effectively called out the GOP and Fox News. Don’t kid yourselves. This is a long-term GOP strategy to gain and hold power. They have no party platform and no goal other than power.

Lacking a propaganda machine comparable to Fox News, President Biden must make the most of his State of the Union address on March 1. This is an exceptionally advantageous opportunity to reach a wide audience of Americans. He must depart from polite tradition and call out the GOP on their abandonment of democratic principals and betrayal of their oaths of office. It is time for a damningly, honest exposé.

This must be an historic address. It must be a profound message that serves to awaken the American people and shame the GOP to again embrace their duty to principled governance and preservation of our cherished democracy.

Make no mistake. This is a four-alarm fire. Flames are at hand and will engulf us soon without immediate attention.

John Benziger is a resident of South China.