Does Joe Biden know what it means to give his word?
In today’s commencement speech at Howard University, President Biden said:
“I give you my word as a Biden: Class of 2023, you’re the reason I’m so optimistic about the future. And I give you my word, I really mean it. You’re part of the most gifted, tolerant, talented, best-educated generation in American history. That’s a fact.
And it’s your generation, more than anyone else’s, who will answer the questions for America: Who are we? What do we stand for? What do you believe? What do we believe? What do we want to be?
I’m not saying you have to share this burden all on your own. The task at hand ahead is the work of all of us.
But what I am saying is: You represent the best of us. And that’s the God’s truth. You represent the best of us.”
TO GIVE ONE’S WORD IS “TO PROMISE SOMETHING,” as in: I promise to do X by time Y. But to Biden, a promise appears to simply be another way of saying: “I really mean it,” or “I’m not kidding,” or “That’s honestly how I feel about it.” So his promise is simply a statement that he is telling us the truth about his mental state – what he really thinks or feels or believes in this moment. But the promises issued by the President of the United States – the promises we should care about and pay attention to – are promises to take a specified action or to refrain from taking a specified action, as in “I promise to faithfully execute the immigration laws of the United States” or “I promise to ensure that no American citizen who is eligible to vote and registered to vote is arbitrarily barred from voting."
Merriam-Webster dictionary:
"give (someone) one's word - idiom
Synonyms of give (someone) one's word
: to promise something
- I'll be there. I give you my word.
- Before departing, we gave our word that we would return in a year's time."
“Give (someone) one's word.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/give%20%28someone%29%20one%27s%20word. Accessed 14 May. 2023.