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On Saturday, US President Joe Biden said the Senate’s acquittal of former President Donald Trump for inciting an insurrection was a reminder that democracy was fragile, and every American had a duty to defend the truth. President said, “This sad chapter in our history has reminded us that democracy is fragile”. He issued a statement hours after the Senate failed to muster the two-thirds majority needed to convict Trump. Biden said, “While the final vote did not lead to a conviction, the substance of the charge is not in dispute. Even those opposed to the conviction, like Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, believe Donald Trump was guilty of a disgraceful dereliction of duty and practically & morally responsible for provoking the violence unleashed on the Capitol”.

President Biden pointed out that 57 senators including a record 7 Republicans voted to find Trump guilty, following a bipartisan vote by the House of Representatives to impeach the Republican former president. He said he was thinking about Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick, who was killed during the siege of the Capitol on 6^th January, others who bravely stood guard, and those who lost their lives. He lauded the courage of those who made efforts to protect the integrity of US democracy, including Democrats, Republicans, election officials, judges, elected representatives, and poll workers. Biden said, “This sad chapter in our history has reminded us that democracy is fragile. That it must always be defended. That we must be ever vigilant. That violence and extremism have no place in America”.

Biden added, “And that each of us has a duty and responsibility as Americans, and especially as leaders, to defend the truth and to defeat the lies. The Democratic president said the task at hand was to end what he called “an uncivil war and heal the very soul of our nation”. It is noteworthy that Senator Lindsey Graham threatened on Sunday that Vice President Kamala Harris will face impeachment if Republicans take back the House of Representatives in the 2022 midterm elections. The GOP lawmaker along with some other Republicans has repeatedly compared Harris’ decision to support bailing out Black Lives Matter demonstrators. He argued that Harris was guilty of inciting violence just as House Democrats and 10 House Republicans had alleged of the former president when voting to impeach him last month.