Below is an edited transcript of president-elect Joe Biden’s remarks this evening, after a pro-Trump mob stormed Capitol Hill:
At this hour, our democracy is under an unprecedented assault.
An assault on the Capitol itself. An assault on the people’s representatives, on the police officers sworn to protect them, and the public servants who work at the heart of our Republic. An assault on the rule of law. An assault on the most sacred of American undertakings: The doing of the people’s business.
Let me be very clear: The scenes of chaos at the Capitol do not reflect the true America. This is not who we are. What we are seeing is a small number of extremists dedicated to lawlessness.
This is not dissent. It is disorder. It is chaos. It borders on sedition. And it must end. Now.
I call on this mob to pull back and allow the work of democracy to go forward.
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