Trump calls Biden's Jan. 6 speech "a distraction"
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Former President Trump on Thursday responded to President Biden's speech on the anniversary of the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, calling it "a distraction for the fact Biden has completely and totally failed."
Driving the news: Biden today squarely blamed the former president for the Capitol siege, saying Trump "created and spread a web of lies about the 2020 election" in an effort to "rewrite history" and added that Trump "rallied the mob to attack" the Capitol.
- Trump has done "what no president in American history, the history of this country, has ever, ever done: He refused to accept the results of the election," Biden said. "For the first time in our history, a president had not just lost an election. He tried to prevent a peaceful transfer of power."
What he's saying: "Biden, who is destroying our Nation with insane policies of open Borders, corrupt Elections, disastrous energy policies, unconstitutional mandates, and devastating school closures, used my name today to try to further divide America," Trump said, even though Biden didn't specifically say his name in the speech.
- He added: "The Democrats want to own this day of Jan. 6 so they can stoke fears and divide America. I say, let them have it because America sees through [their] lies and polarizations."
The bottom line: Biden's victory in the 2020 presidential election was certified successfully on the morning of Jan. 7, 2021. There is no evidence that the election results were rigged.
Go deeper: Biden blames Trump for Jan. 6 Capitol riot
