When President Biden went down hard at the Air Force Academy Commencement, my heart dropped. I thought for sure he’d been assassinated. My fear was quickly allayed when it was apparent he’d stumbled and fell. Air Force officers were helping him to his feet, and President Biden pointed to the stage behind him. It turns out he was pointing to a traitorous sand bag at fault for his stumble.

What went through my mind was fear and then fury because someone dared to attack our democratic republic and by extension all Americans. Again, that lasted only moments as President Biden was helped to his feet.

Make no mistake. I don’t like President Biden as a person and I detest his policies and I question his leadership at all times. He is our President. My reaction, I hope, was a reaction shared by all Americans.

It’s with severe disappointment that I don’t think that all Americans share this innate patriotism. And this is revealed in how many Americans reacted to an actual assassination attempt on President Trump. Did you hear anyone say “How could they have missed?” or “Get better aim next time!”? Did you say this?

What does this say about Americans who celebrate a treasonous killer who tried to murder the presidential frontrunner and former President of the United States? Or celebrate felony convictions on fabricated charges? Or celebrate impeachments designed to deny President Trump a second term? These are actions engineered to deny American voters their constitutional guarantee to elect the American candidate of their choosing. Much is made of “threat to democracy” but our democracy has already been under direct assault.

And there are Americans who celebrate this assault upon our democracy.

We have the greatest country in history – for the people and by the people – to ever protect the human rights and freedom of all citizens. Yet some surrender our greatness and freedom for the bargain basement price of “bad orange man must not be President again … at any cost.”

As a nation, as a people, we have a reckoning and introspection to pay that will be uncomfortable and revealing. The hate Americans feel for Americans is unavoidable, the volunteered acceptance of political violence is impossible to ignore.

I see the attempt to murder President Trump as an opportunity for our people. This isn’t a call to “unite.” That will take a lot of time. It’s not going to happen overnight. It’s taken years for us to get to this grotesque place. It’ll take at least years to reunite. I know we can.

This opportunity is for Americans to rediscover what it is to be Americans and reflect on how precious and unique our nation truly is. We have it really really really good in the United States of America. It’s worth preserving and nurturing. We’re worth it. It’s going to take an incredibly trying, honest conversation first. This is our opportunity to start the conversation.