Biden plans White House event marking January 6 riots
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In a ceremony in the White House's East Room, US President Joe Biden will commemorate the January 6 attacks on the Capitol that took place two years ago and resulted in the death of five.
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President Joe Biden speaks with members of the press after stepping off Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House, Monday, Jan. 2, 2023, in Washington (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
US President Joe Biden plans to commemorate the second anniversary of the January 6 riots with a ceremony in the White House's East Room, according to a schedule released by his office on Monday.
Friday's event will be a rare opportunity for Biden to address the live issues sparked by supporters of his Republican predecessor Donald Trump's riot. Their actions halted the certification of the Democratic Party's 2020 victory.
While Biden has denounced the attack as a threat to democracy and the rule of law, he rarely mentions his predecessor by name in public.
Biden, who is about to begin his third year in office, has stated his intention to run for a second four-year term but has not formally declared his candidacy.
As for Trump, he has already declared that he will run again in 2024.
Last month, the January 6 House panel recommended criminal referrals for Trump, his attorney John Eastman, and others for breaching four federal criminal statutes. The former president would be the first President in history to be conducted to a criminal referral. Days later, the final report by the US House January 6 Select Committee on the investigation of the Capitol riots has been concluded: former President Donald Trump is accused of engaging in a "multi-part conspiracy".
According to the report, the MAGA campaigner "purposely disseminated false allegations of fraud... and for purposes of soliciting contributions," which led to the riots at the Capitol. The report stated that these indicate support for "a multi-part conspiracy to overturn the lawful results of the 2020 Presidential election."
Trump, who is facing two other federal probes, has decried the House investigation as politically motivated.
On the morning of January 6, 2021, the former president gave his supporters a fiery speech and publicly chastised then-Vice Mike Pence for not going along with his scheme to reject ballots cast for Biden.
Waiting hours before making a public speech, thousands of his supporters stormed the Capitol, assaulted police, and threatened to hang Pence.
Read: Trump arranged 7-part plan to overturn 2020 election: Jan. 6 committee
The violent and chaotic attack resulted in the death of five people at the capitol, including a policeman.
Other Trump associates summoned by the committee include Steve Bannon, Trump's former chief strategist, and Kashyap Patel, Trump's controversial top aide.
