As we were going to say …

The Gettysburg Address speech that no one gives before it turns into a pie fight

The best political speech in many years was not delivered. Instead, incoming Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid set it aside and reprimanded members of Benjamin Netanyahu’s departing coalition for their nonstop heckling of incoming Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, which was outrageous even by the standards of the Knesset. Several members were hauled out of the parliament’s chambers.

To President Biden, the speaker of the House and the Senate majority leader: Use your power with magnanimity and respect. Look for common ground. Acknowledge that those with opinions very different from your own can be as patriotic as you are. To the House and Senate minority leaders: Accept with grace the peaceful transition of power. Seek to minimize divisions among the people, not use them for partisan purposes.