Donald Trump attacked President Joe Biden and doubled down on his false claim that the 2020 election was "rigged" in a Thursday statement marking the one-year anniversary of the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol by the former president's supporters.
"Biden, who is destroying our Nation with insane policies of open Borders, corrupt Elections, disastrous energy policies, unconstitutional mandates, and devastating school closures, used my name today to try to further divide America," Trump asserted.
The former president went on to slam the House select committee investigating the January 6 attack.
"Why is it that the Unselect Committee of totally partisan political hacks, whose judgment has long ago been made, not discussing the rigged Presidential Election of 2020? It's because they don't have the answers or justifications for what happened," he said.
Two Republicans—Representatives Liz Cheney of Wyoming and Adam Kinzinger of Illinois—are members of the committee.
Trump added, "They want all conversation concerning the Election 'Canceled.' Just look at the numbers, they speak for themselves. They are not justifiable, so the complicit media just calls it the Big Lie, when in actuality the Big Lie was the Election itself."
He concluded, "The Democrats want to own this day of January 6th so they can stoke fears and divide America. I say, let them have it because America sees through their lies and polarizations."
Although Trump and his allies continue to claim that the 2020 presidential election was "rigged" or "stolen," they have not brought forward evidence substantiating the allegation. To the contrary, more than 60 election-challenge lawsuits filed by the former president and his supporters have failed in state and federal courts. Even judges appointed by Trump have ruled against the baseless allegations.
Meanwhile, audits and recounts across the country—including in states where the election was overseen by pro-Trump conservatives—have consistently upheld Biden's victory over the former president. Former Attorney General William Barr, who many viewed as one of Trump's most loyal Cabinet members, said in December 2020 that there was "no evidence" to support allegations of widespread fraud.
Barr's assertion came after he had the Justice Department investigate the claims.
Trump's conspiracy theory about the 2020 election motivated hundreds of his supporters to attack the Capitol last year. The assault came after Trump told them at a nearby rally to "fight like hell" and march to the federal building, where Congress was meeting to formally certify Biden's Electoral College win.
In the aftermath of the violence, 10 House Republicans—led by Cheney—voted to impeach Trump along with House Democrats. Although Trump was acquitted by the Senate about a month later, seven GOP senators joined every member of the chamber's Democratic Caucus in voting "guilty." This made the presidential impeachment and conviction votes the most bipartisan in U.S. history. But the effort still fell short of the high-constitutional threshold—a two-thirds majority in the Senate—for a successful "guilty" verdict.
Cheney marked the one-year anniversary of the attack on Thursday morning by warning that the "threat" from Trump persists. The former president "continues to make the same claims that he knows caused violence on January 6," she said in a Today show interview.
The Wyoming Republican also slammed fellow GOP lawmakers who have downplayed the violence on that day. "It's very important, if you look at what's happening today in my party, the Republican Party," Cheney said.
"Rather than reject what happened on [January] 6th, reject the lies about the election and make clear that a president who engaged in those activities can never be president again, unfortunately too many in my own party are embracing that former president, are looking the other way, are minimizing the danger," the congresswoman said.
Update 01/06/22, 11:15 a.m. ET: This story was updated with additional information and background.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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Jason Lemon is a Weekend Editor at Newsweek based in Brooklyn, New York. Prior to taking on the editor role, Jason's reporting focused on ... Read more
