Biden insists Trump IS guilty and his charge of insurrection is ‘not in dispute’ despite acquittal as he praises Republican senators for voting to convict and Mitch McConnell for calling ex-president’s actions a ‘dereliction of duty’
- Biden issued a statement on Saturday night after Senate acquittal of Trump
- He praised those from both parties who ‘those who demonstrated the courage to protect the integrity of our democracy’ before and after the election
- Called the events of January 6 a ‘sad chapter in our history’
- Denounced ‘violence and extremism’ and said all Americans have a duty ‘to defend the truth and to defeat the lies’
President Joe Biden has reacted to the Senate acquittal of Donald Trump by calling for unity, even as he insists that the ‘substance’ of the charge of incitement to insurrection is ‘not in dispute.’
‘While the final vote did not lead to a conviction, the substance of the charge is not in dispute,’ Biden said in a statement on Saturday night.
‘Even those opposed to the conviction, like Senate Minority Leader McConnell, believe Donald Trump was guilty of a ‘disgraceful dereliction of duty’ and ‘practically and morally responsible for provoking’ the violence unleashed on the Capitol,’ Biden added.
Biden said that following the trial, he was thinking of those who died on January 6, as well as ‘those who demonstrated the courage to protect the integrity of our democracy – Democrats and Republicans, election officials and judges, elected representatives and poll workers – before and after the election.’
President Joe Biden has reacted to the Senate acquittal of Donald Trump by calling for unity, even as he insists that the ‘substance’ of the charge of incitement to insurrection is ‘not in dispute.’
‘This sad chapter in our history has reminded us that democracy is fragile,’ said Biden
‘This sad chapter in our history has reminded us that democracy is fragile,’ said Biden.
‘That it must always be defended. That we must be ever vigilant. That violence and extremism has no place in America. And that each of us has a duty and responsibility as Americans, and especially as leaders, to defend the truth and to defeat the lies,’ he added.
‘That is how we end this uncivil war and heal the very soul of our nation. That is the task ahead. And it’s a task we must undertake together. As the United States of America,’ said Biden.
It came hours after the Senate voted 57-43 to convict, falling far short of the 67 votes needed even as seven Republicans joined with the Democrats on the question.
‘If I can´t say what I believe that our president should stand for, then why should I ask Alaskans to stand with me?’ Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, one of the Republicans voting to convict, told reporters.
It came hours after the Senate voted 57-43 to convict, falling far short of the 67 votes needed even as seven Republicans joined with the Democrats on the question
Besides Murkowski, other Republican senators voting against Trump were Richard Burr of North Carolina, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Susan Collins of Maine, Mitt Romney of Utah, Ben Sasse of Nebraska and Patrick Toomey of Pennsylvania.
Underscoring the perils of affronting Trump and his legions of GOP loyalists, by late evening top Republicans from at least two of the defecting senators’ states had blasted them.
Pennsylvania GOP Chairman Lawrence Tabas issued a statement saying he shared ‘the disappointment of many of our grassroots leaders and volunteers’ over Toomey’s vote. Louisiana´s Republican Party said, ‘We condemn, in the strongest possible terms’ Cassidy’s vote and said its executive committee voted unanimously to censure him.
Democrats holding out long-shot hopes of convicting Trump would have needed 17 Republicans to prevail, which as expected proved an unreachable goal.
That hope died after the influential Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, said he would vote to acquit because he believed lawmakers had no jurisdiction over a former president.
Even so, McConnell delivered searing words against Trump in a speech after the vote, saying the former president was ‘practically and morally responsible’ for provoking the attack on lawmakers as they formally certified Trump’s Electoral College defeat by Joe Biden.
Five people died, and the House impeached Trump for inciting insurrection.