'The same forces that led Jan 6 remain at work today,' Biden warns

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - US President Joe Biden issued an stalwart warning to the American people on Friday, saying those responsible for the mayhem that enveloped the US Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 remain at work.

Speaking at the Port of Los Angeles, Biden said "the same forces that led January 6 remain at work today."

"It's about our democracy itself. We have to protect our democracy," the president said. "We're seeing how the battle for the soul of America has been far from won, but I know together, and I mean this, we can unite and defend this nation, Democrat and Republican; allow no one to place a dagger at the throat of our democracy."

The comments come one day after a special panel investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection held its first public hearing.

Laying out its evidence in the nationally-televised session, the House of Representatives special committee placed blame for the insurrection squarely on the shoulders of former President Donald Trump.

"The violence was no accident,” said Rep. Bennie Thompson, the chairman of the panel. “Jan. 6 was the culmination of an attempted coup, a brazen attempt, as one rioter put it shortly after Jan. 6, to overthrow the government.”

The panel played a previously unseen video clip of Trump’s attorney general, William Barr, testifying that he told Trump his claims of a rigged election were “bull - - - -,” and that he “didn’t want to be a part of it.”

"You can't live in a world where the incumbent administration stays in power based on its view, unsupported by specific evidence…that there was fraud in the election,” said Barr in the taped interview.

The video clip offered a preview of the committee’s months-long investigation, which contains an abundance of evidence collected by congressional investigators who interviewed more than 1,000 witnesses, including key figures in Trump’s attempt to retain the presidency.