Former President Donald Trump replied to President Joe Biden’s harsh criticism in a speech on January 6, claiming that his Democratic successor is attempting to distract from his record.
Trump stated in a statement that Biden “used my name today to attempt to further divide America.” “All of this political theater is merely a distraction from the fact that Biden has fully and thoroughly failed.”
“Our country no longer has borders, has completely lost control of Covid (record numbers! ), is no longer energy independent, inflation is rampant, our military is in chaos, and our exit, or surrender, from Afghanistan, was perhaps the most humiliating day in the long and distinguished history of the United States—and so much more,” Trump continued.
Biden took several shots at Trump in a speech delivered Thursday morning, saying he “created and spread a web of lies about the 2020 election,” and that he did so “because he values power over principle; he sees his own interest as more important than America’s interest; his bruised ego matters more to him than our democracy or our Constitution.”
In his response, the former president targeted the House committee looking into the events of January 6, 2021, reiterating his bogus allegation that the 2020 presidential election was “rigged.”
Trump finished by saying Democrats “want to own this day” in order to “stoke fears and divide America.”
“Let them have it,” Trump urged, adding that “America sees through” their words and behavior.
Democrats say they’ve been waiting for Biden to reply in kind, as the stakes rise in the run-up to the midterm elections, with his poll ratings plummeting and Democrats facing losing control of both chambers of Congress.
While Democrats applauded Biden’s remarks, several Republicans and conservative critics said they were divisive.
The commemoration ceremonies were attended by mostly Democratic legislators, but not by Republicans, a sign of the control that Trump and his ideas maintain over the Republican Party.
