President-elect Joe Biden hasn’t been deterred from being sworn in on the steps of the U.S. Capitol after last week’s attack on Congress by Trump supporters.
“I’m not afraid of taking the oath outside,” Biden told reporters Monday in Delaware after receiving his second coronavirus vaccine.
The incoming president confirmed his team had been briefed on security measures being taken for his inauguration on Jan. 20. His platform ceremony will take place exactly two weeks after Trump backers stormed the symbol of American democracy. Five people were killed in the chaos.
During his brief remarks, Biden repeated it was “critically important” that there be “a real, serious focus” on bringing those involved to justice. He described them as “engaging in sedition,” which endangered people’s lives and destroyed public property.
But he also referenced concerns that impeaching Trump would derail his efforts to broker another COVID-19 aid deal. He said it was his “hope and expectation” that House and Senate allies could “bifurcate” the impeachment process and their legislative agenda.
“Can we go half a day on dealing with the impeachment and half a day getting my people nominated and confirmed in the Senate, as well as moving on the package?” he said to reporters.
House Democrats on Monday started the process of impeaching Trump for the second time in a year, calling first on Vice President Mike Pence to remove him from office using the Constitution’s 25th Amendment.
