AFP

Former US President Donald Trump responded Saturday to Joe Biden, who portrayed him as a threat to democracy, describing the Democratic president as an "enemy of the state" during a rally in Pennsylvania in preparation for the midterm elections. In front of his supporters, the Republican billionaire denounced the FBI search of his home in Mar-a-Lago, Florida, on August 8, saying that this investigation constitutes a "blatant example of real threats to the freedom of Americans" and "one of the most horrific violations." power from any administration in American history." Trump is in Wilkes Barre, a small town near Biden's hometown of Scranton, to support Republican candidates in the upcoming November 8 midterm elections, notably Mehmet Oz, a doctor who has become a star on the small screen. But in Pennsylvania, which will be key in the battle for control of both houses of Congress, Biden preceded Trump this week and attacked him with rare ferocity, accusing the former Republican president and the Republicans who adopt his "Make America Great Again" doctrine of representing "extremism that threatens the foundations of our republic." In Philadelphia, the cradle of the United States, Biden called for saving the "spirit of America", sharply criticizing those he said "do not respect the Constitution", "do not believe in the rule of law" and "do not recognize the will of the people." Trump responded by saying, "He (Biden) is the enemy of the state," denouncing "a speech that is the most vicious, hateful and divisive that an American president has ever delivered," and stressing that Biden's speech "was just hate and anger." Amid red and blue banners calling for "Save America," Edward Young, 63, said, "The President of the United States, the so-called President of the United States, has declared war on me. He has declared war on half of America." Denouncing inflation and increasing insecurity, Trump, who is publicly seeking to run for president again in 2024, wanted to give the most negative outcome of the Biden era, in a speech that sometimes took the tone of the presidential campaign. "You can take the five worst presidents in the history of the United States and put them together," said the 76-year-old Republican, adding, "They haven't done the damage Joe Biden has done to our country in less than two years." The rally began with a selection of photos of Biden stammering during speeches. In his first public appearance since the FBI search of his residence in Mar-a-Lago, Florida, on August 8, Trump said the investigation was "the blatant example of real threats to American freedom" and "one of the most appalling abuses of power." by any administration in American history." The former president stressed that the "shameful raid" of his Mar-a-Lago residence was a "mockery of justice". The FBI conducted this search because it suspected that the former president illegally kept classified documents from his tenure in the White House (2017-2021). Federal investigators believe that among the 30 seized funds are top-secret documents that "might be hidden" to obstruct the investigation, according to a Justice Department document. But for Trump, this "blatant violation of the law" will lead to a "violent backlash that no one has ever seen before." The Republican billionaire is also targeted for investigations into his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election and his role in the violent assault by several of his supporters on the Capitol on January 6, 2021. However, Trump is not currently on trial in any of these cases. The former president also again questioned the outcome of the 2020 presidential election, which he lost to Biden. "The American elections must be decided by the American people," Trump said. "It didn't happen that way in 2020."