On Monday (Jan. 6), the 2024 election win will be certified by the United States Congress and Vice President Kamala Harris, who shared a video tweet regarding her upcoming duties. The process marks one of the final steps before Donald Trump’s return to the White House.
In an op-ed published by The Washington Post on Sunday (Jan. 5), President Joe Biden assured American citizens that everything will go smoothly. “Clerks, staff and members of Congress will gather to certify the results of a free and fair presidential election and ensure a peaceful transfer of power,” he wrote. He also confirmed that Capitol Police will provide security during the ceremony, which made the country “a beacon to the world” and ratified “the will of the voters... for more than two centuries.”
The outgoing head of state advised readers to keep in mind the infamous, deadly riots that took place in Washington, D.C. four years ago. “For much of our history, this proceeding was treated as pro forma, a routine act. But after what we all witnessed on Jan. 6, 2021, we know we can never again take it for granted,” he expressed. “Violent insurrectionists attacked the Capitol, threatened the lives of elected officials and assaulted brave law enforcement officers. 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.”
Biden continued, “But we should not forget. We must remember the wisdom of the adage that any nation that forgets its past is doomed to repeat it. We cannot accept a repeat of what occurred four years ago. An unrelenting effort has been underway to rewrite – even erase – the history of that day. To tell us we didn’t see what we all saw with our own eyes. To dismiss concerns about it as some kind of partisan obsession. To explain it away as a protest that just got out of hand. This is not what happened.”