The uprising, incited by an ex-President who fueled white nationalism, underscored how America's oldest fault line is also one of its freshest following last summer's national racial reckoning. The two juxtaposed episodes less than three weeks apart encapsulated the nation's deep divides that Biden must confront but also a democracy's potential for change. Biden in the middleLike many other issues, the debate over what Biden has said is "systemic" racism in the criminal justice system puts the President between two absolutist positions. Conservative media has already accused Biden of wrongly equating every Trump voter with White nationalists and racists. But he has also always had a strong relationship with the police and their unions during his long political career.

Source: The Nation January 26, 2021 11:48 UTC