US President Joe Biden has assured that he will be present at President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration ceremony, vowing that the "election will be certified peacefully." Biden, in an opinion piece published in The Washington Post, reminded Americans of the Capitol Hill attack of 2021, as he said, "We should be proud that our democracy withstood this assault. And we should be glad we will not see such a shameful attack again this year."
On Monday, Congress will convene amid chilly winter in Washington to certify Trump's victory in the elections held in November. The session will be presided over by Kamala Harris, the US Vice President and President-elect's challenger from the Democratic Party.
Biden reminds US of Capitol Hill attacks
Biden, in the opinion piece, further mentions, "After what we all witnessed on January 6, 2021, we know we can never again take it for granted." “To tell us we didn't see what we all saw with our own eyes,” Biden wrote. “We cannot allow the truth to be lost”, he added.
Vowing that the election will be certified fully, Biden says, "I have invited the incoming president to the White House on the morning of January 20, and I will be present for his inauguration that afternoon." Notably, Trump had skipped Biden's inauguration in 2021.
Earlier on Sunday, Biden told reporters at the White House that whatever happened on January 6, 2021, should not be 'rewritten', adding “I don't think it should be forgotten."
Biden spent much of 2024 warning voters that Trump was a serious threat to the nation's democracy. This past week, the president awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal to Liz Cheney and Bennie Thompson, leaders of the congressional investigation into the Capitol riot.
US to have peaceful transition of power: Biden
As he did with his opinion piece, Biden used his Sunday comments to reporters to stress that his administration is overseeing a peaceful handover of power, unlike the last one. ”I've reached out to make sure the smooth transition," Biden said of Trump's incoming administration. "We've got to get back to basic, normal transfer of power", he added.
Asked if he still viewed his soon-to-be successor in the White House as a threat to democracy, Biden responded, "I think what he did was a genuine threat to democracy. I'm hopeful we're beyond that now.
(With agency inputs)
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