US President Donald Trump on Tuesday refused to take responsibility for the storming of US Congress by a mob of his supporters, and warned that there was "tremendous anger" across the country over the ongoing moves to impeach him.
On his way to Texas, Trump insisted that everybody thought his speech was ‘totally appropriate’ and warned that "while you have to always avoid violence, his supporters are furious."
I've never seen such anger, he added.
The House of Representatives is set to initiate impeachment proceedings against Trump on Wednesday over his January 6 speech in which he claimed to be the real winner of the November election and urged his supporters to march on Congress.
Trump dubbed his likely impeachment a "continuation of the greatest witch hunt in the history of politics."
Ever since the November 3 election, the Republican real estate tycoon has been obsessively alleging that Biden stole the election.
But his speech last week and the crowd's attack, which included fatally wounding a policeman, proved beyond the pale even for some of his staunchest supporters.
Major representatives of the corporate and sporting world have turned their backs on Trump and the Republican party, which was in thrall to the populist leader for four years, has begun to show serious cracks.
Trump, however, remains in denial.
Free speech is under assault like never before: Donald Trump
Free speech is under assault in the United States like never before, outgoing President Donald Trump said as almost all major social media outlets moved to block him following the breach of the Capitol Hill by his supporters.
"Free speech is under assault like never before. The 25th Amendment is of zero risk to me but will come back to haunt Joe Biden and the Biden administration. As the expression goes, be careful what you wish for," Trump said in his remarks at a border wall in Texas.
"The impeachment hoax is a continuation of the greatest and most vicious witch hunt in the history of our country and is causing tremendous anger and division, and pain far greater than most people will ever understand, which is very dangerous for the USA, especially at this very tender time," he said.
Referring to last week's events, Trump said millions of Americans watched on as a mob stormed the Capitol and trashed the halls of the government.
"I have consistently said throughout my administration, we believe in respecting America's history and traditions, not tearing them down. We believe in the rule of law, not in violence or rioting," he said.
The COVID-19 pandemic has made it a very difficult year and a difficult election for the US, Trump said.
"Now is the time for our nation to heal, and it is time for peace and for calm, respect for law enforcement and the great people within law enforcement. So many are here is the foundation of the MAGA agenda and we are a nation of law, and we are a nation of order," the President said.
