President-elect Joe Biden walks to a motorcade vehicle after stepping off a plane at New Castle Airport in New Castle, Del., Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2020. Biden is returning from a campaign rally in Atlanta for Georgia Democratic candidates for U.S. Senate Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
Patrick Semansky / AP Photo
Patrick Semansky / AP Photo
President-elect Joe Biden walks to a motorcade vehicle after stepping off a plane at New Castle Airport in New Castle, Del., Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2020. Biden is returning from a campaign rally in Atlanta for Georgia Democratic candidates for U.S. Senate Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
President-elect Biden called the violent protests that engulfed the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday an “assault on the most sacred of American undertakings: the doing of the people’s business,” and called on President Trump to immediately call on his supporters to stop the violence.
In a somber address, Biden called on President Trump, who had not publicly spoken since a rally earlier Wednesday, to “go on national television now to fulfil his oath and defend the constitution and demand an end to this siege.”
Shortly after, Trump released a pre-recorded video urging protesters to go home.
The president-elect spoke hours after a mob of extremists loyal to President Trump stormed the Capitol on Wednesday, bringing Congress’s counting of the electoral votes to confirm Biden’s victory. Police evacuated some lawmakers from the building, in a chaotic scene that shook the very foundation of American democracy.
Biden said that the words of a president matter. At their best, he said, they can inspire. But at their worst, he added, they can incite.
The President-elect described the conduct of the pro-Trump extremists on Wednesday as an “insurrection,” and said the behavior “borders on sedition.”
A collection of interviews, photos, and music videos, featuring local musicians who have stopped by the WITF performance studio to share a little discussion and sound. Produced by WITF’s Joe Ulrich.
