Former President Trump announced he would hold a news conference from Mar-a-Lago on Jan. 6, the one-year anniversary of the riot at the U.S. Capitol that the former president himself was accused of inciting.
“Why isn’t the Unselect Committee of highly partisan political hacks investigating the CAUSE of the January 6th protest, which was the rigged Presidential Election of 2020?” Trump said in his statement Tuesday announcing the news conference.
The former president went on to cite several states where he claimed “the numbers don’t work for them, or even come close.” He also sought to reframe the November 2020 election as “the insurrection,” instead of the day his supporters overran the Capitol in an attempt to block certification of the electoral results.
“I will be having a news conference on January 6th at Mar-a-Lago to discuss all of these points, and more,” Trump said. “Until then, remember, the insurrection took place on November 3rd, it was the completely unarmed protest of the rigged election that took place on January 6th.”
Earlier this week, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) announced that her office intended to hold a “prayerful vigil” and a discussion among historians on the upcoming anniversary of the attack.
The White House has also said it would commemorate the day.
“Jan. 6 was one of the darkest days in our democracy,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said. “It was a day when our nation’s capital was under attack and I think there’s no question you’ll see us commemorate that day.”
More than 700 people have been charged in connection to the riot, when pro-Trump supporters breached the Capitol and pushed past police officers. Dozens of others have been subpoenaed for the House select committee investigation.
Multiple people died amid the Capitol siege, including a pro-Trump supporter who was shot by a Capitol Police officer, while others were injured.