PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN speaking Thursday evening (White House photo).

Sounding an alarm that former president Donald Trump’s “extreme ideology” was a danger to American democracy, President Joe Biden on Thursday night called on voters to rally to defend “the very foundation of our republic.”

Biden made the speech in Independence Hall in Philadelphia while pro-Trump demonstrators outside shouted their objections, according to the Associated Press.

He said he wasn’t condemning the 74 millions voters who cast their ballots for Trump in 2020, but said that “There’s no question that the Republican Party today is dominated by Donald Trump and his MAGA [Make America Great Again] Republicans.”

The speech comes just before the Labor Day holiday, a time when Americans traditionally are believed to begin to focus on the November elections. Polls suggest that Democrats are favored to retain control of the Senate, while Republicans are favored narrowly to gain a a majority in the House of Representatives.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-California) replied that it was Biden, not Trump, who was making an assault on American democracy and “betrayed America’s trust.”

Another moon shot on Saturday

Weather conditions are said to be favorable for blast off Saturday of the project which is expected to return humans to the moon in 2024.

United Press International reports that NASA is planning a 2:17 p.m. (Eastern time) launch of the unmanned Artemis 1 rocket and Orion space capsule as a test for future manned flights.

If the launch is called off on Saturday, the next “weather window” would be on Monday. The last trip to the moon in the Apollo space program was nearly 50 years ago.

Sports: College football playoff to expand

The College Football Playoff will be expanding from four to 12 teams, perhaps as early as 2024. The executive board of the playoff voted on Friday to make the move no later than 2026.

However, Sports Illustrated is reporting than the timeline could be speeded up to start the new format as early as two years from now. Under the plan, the top six conference champions and six at-large teams would make the field. The top four ranked teams would have a first-round bye.

The Los Angeles Angels will open a series tonight in Anaheim hosting the Houston Astros. The Los Angeles Dodgers will host the San Diego Padres.

Weather: Hot and then hotter

The heat wave that’s sent thermometers rising all over Southern California will continued to toast the West Orange County area this weekend. The forecast calls for a daytime high of 96 on Saturday under sunny skies with an overnight low of 76.

Sunday will be warmer at 98 (72) and Monday a bit cooler at 93 (72). Daytime temps will stay in the low 90s and high 80s next week.