‘Should not be rewritten, forgotten’: President Joe Biden on US Capitol attack

“I don’t think we should pretend it didn’t happen,” he told reporters at the White House, a day before Trump’s comeback victory is set to be certified by Congress.

Following Biden’s victory in the 2020 election, US President-elect Trump had urged Congress and his vice president to block the certification, falsely alleging widespread fraud in his defeat.

After a rally outside the White House, Trump’s supporters stormed the Capitol building, causing the certification to be delayed until the early hours of the next morning.

The attack was allegedly aimed to stop Biden from taking office and was seen as an insurrection, with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) labeling it ‘domestic terrorism.’

Trump, who allegedly urged his supporters to march to the Capitol that day was impeached by the House for “incitement of insurrection,” but the Senate later acquitted him.

During his 2020 presidential campaign, Trump claimed that Democrats would engage in widespread voter fraud by forging, altering, or discarding absentee ballots as many voters intended to use them to avoid COVID-19 exposure at polling stations.

“I think what he did was a genuine threat to democracy,” Biden said Sunday, but adding: “I’m hopeful that we’re beyond it.”

“I think it should not be rewritten, I don’t think it should be forgotten,” he said.

He also emphasized his efforts to ensure a “smooth transition.”

“We’ve got to get back to basic, normal transfer of power,” he said.

Biden often portrayed Trump as a threat to democracy while running as the Democratic presidential nominee, before being replaced on the ticket by Vice President Kamala Harris.

In contrast to the 2020 election, Biden accepted Trump’s victory and, demonstrating a commitment to a peaceful transfer of power, invited him for a meeting at the White House.

With AFP inputs