(AP) Biden called on Trump to “go on national television now, to fulfill his oath and defend the Constitution and demand an end to this siege.”
Trump released a video hours after the unrest began declaring, “I know your pain. I know your hurt. But you have to go home now.” He went on to call the supporters “very special.”
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany also joined top congressional Republicans in urging an end to the violence and for the mob to leave the Capitol.
Biden has said previously that pursuing criminal action against Trump might not be “good” for American democracy, though he wouldn’t block future, independent Justice Department investigations into Trump once he leaves office.
There may be calls now for Biden to rethink that.
“The events of today really demonstrate that, for some people, rules do not matter, so you kind of have to govern that way,” said Alicia Garza, head of the Black to the Future Action Fund, an advocacy group that works to empower Black Americans in politics. “I would imagine that Joe Biden now understands that his role has completely shifted. He’s going to have be — not the uniter in chief, he’s going to have to be the decider in chief.”
Biden’s original speech was delayed by more than an hour as his aides tore up the original, scheduled remarks and worked to craft a new statement that could address what was unfolding more than 100 miles away in the nation’s capital.
There didn’t appear to be additional security around Biden or his motorcade. But as the president-elect huddled backstage, agents on his U.S. Secret Service detail stood in their places in front of the stage where he was set to speak, which featured four American flags, for more than hour.
Upon beginning his speech, Biden said the events at the Capitol “do not reflect a true America. Do not represent who we are.”
“The work of the moment and the work of the next four years must be the restoration of democracy, of decency, of honor, of respect, the rule of law,” he said. “Just plain, simple decency. The renewal of a politics that’s about solving problems, looking out for one another, not stoking the flames of hate and chaos.”
After concluding his remarks, the president-elect answered a journalist’s question about whether he was worried about his safety on Inauguration Day in Washington on Jan. 20.
“I am not concerned about my safety, security or the inauguration,” Biden said. “The American people are going to stand up, stand up now. Enough is enough.”
