Republican leaders have pitched a vision of unity in which Biden refrains from actions that antagonize their base of voters, who, polls say, falsely doubt the legitimacy of his election, give former President Donald Trump high approval ratings and want their leaders to resist Biden's agenda.

Dan Pfeiffer, who dealt with a similar dilemma as a senior adviser to President Barack Obama, said Biden's obligation will be to "reach out to Republicans in Washington in good faith" but not to sacrifice progress for the sake of unity.

"Ultimately, if Mitch McConnell decides to be an obstructionist, that's on him, not Joe Biden," Pfeiffer said.

"The key is make sure we govern from more of a reasonable, more moderate place and show that we can work with Democrats and Republicans to get things done," Rep.

It's far from clear that Biden's pleas for unity will soften an opposition party answerable to a base of voters who, polls say, want their leaders to fight him.

Democrats said by a 25-point margin that Biden should work with Republicans to accomplish things, even if it means disappointing some of his voters

But Republicans said the opposite: By a 21-point margin, they said GOP leaders should "stand up to Biden" on big issues even if that makes it harder to tackle critical problems

Some Republicans are calling on Biden and Democrats, in the name of unity, to dismiss the House-approved article of impeachment charging Trump with inciting insurrection