AG nominee Merrick Garland: Rule of law is the very foundation of democracy

2:33 p.m. ET, January 7, 2021

AG nominee Merrick Garland: Rule of law is the very foundation of democracy

From CNN's Maureen Chowdhury, Kate Sullivan and Eric Bradner

Federal Judge Merrick Garland delivers remarks after being nominated to be U.S. attorney general by President-elect Joe Biden at The Queen theater on January 7 in Wilmington, Delaware. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

President-elect Joe Biden's attorney general pick Merrick Garland addressed the Capitol siege while accepting his nomination, calling it a reminder of why rule of law is the very foundation of democracy.

"As everyone who watched yesterday's events in Washington now understands, if they did not understand before, the rule of law is not just some lawyer's turn of phrase. It is the very foundation of our democracy. The essence of the rule of law is that like cases are treated alike. That there not be one rule for Democrats and another for Republicans, one rule for friends, another for foes, one rule for the powerful, another for the powerless, one rule for the rich, and another for the poor, or different rules, depending on one's race or ethnicity. The essence of its great corollary, equal justice until law, is that all citizens are protected in the exercise of their civil rights. Those ideals have animated the Department of Justice since the very moment of its inception," he said.

Garland, whose nomination to the Supreme Court in 2016 by President Barack Obama was ignored by Senate Republicans, was seen as a top contender for the position, but concerns about the vacancy his selection would create on the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia had raised alarm bells among Biden and many advisers who believed Senate Republicans would block any nomination to that seat. Democrats winning both Georgia Senate allayed those concerns.

2:52 p.m. ET, January 7, 2021

Joe Biden says police treated Black Lives Matter protesters "very differently"

President-elect Joe Biden speaks during an event at The Queen theater in Wilmington, Delaware, on January 7. Susan Walsh/AP

President-elect Joe Biden said that yesterday, after the chaos started, at the Capitol his granddaughter texted him a photo of police in full military gear lining the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during a Black Lives Matter protest.

"No one can tell me that if it had been a group of Black Lives Matter protesting yesterday there wouldn't — they wouldn't have been treated very, very differently than the mob of thugs that stormed the Capitol," he said.

He continued: "We all know that is true, and it is unacceptable. Totally unacceptable."

Watch the moment:

2:38 p.m. ET, January 7, 2021

Biden to his Justice team: "Your loyalty is not to me"

From CNN's Maureen Chowdhury

President-elect Joe Biden speaks during an event at The Queen theater in Wilmington, Delaw, Thursday, January 7. Susan Walsh/AP

President-elect Joe Biden said he would work to restore the "honor, integrity, independence" of the US Department of Justice that's been so "badly damaged" by President Trump, during his announcement of his Justice Department appointments and nominations, including Merrick Garland for attorney general.

"I want to be clear to those who lead this department who you will serve. You won't work for me. You are not the president or the vice president's lawyer. Your loyalty is not to me," Biden said.

"It's to the law, the Constitution, the people of this nation, to guarantee justice," he said.

Watch the moment:

2:43 p.m. ET, January 7, 2021

Pelosi calls for invoking 25th Amendment and says Congress could impeach if Pence does not act

From CNN's Clare Foran, Manu Raju and Daniella Diaz

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi holds her weekly press conference at the US Capitol on January 7 in Washington, DC. Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called for invoking the 25th Amendment over the riots at the US Capitol and said that if that doesn’t happen then Congress may move to impeach.

“I join the Senate Democratic leader in calling on the vice president to remove this President by immediately invoking the 25th Amendment. If the vice president and the Cabinet do not act, the Congress may be prepared to move forward with impeachment that is the overwhelming sentiment of my caucus and the American people," she said in a news conference

This comes after Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer earlier today called for the vice president to immediately invoke the 25th Amendment.

Some context: Invoking the 25th Amendment would require Vice President Mike Pence and a majority of the Cabinet to vote to remove President Trump from office due to his inability to "discharge the powers and duties of his office" — an unprecedented step.

Any 25th Amendment push faces an unprecedented steep hill to come to fruition with little time left before Joe Biden's inauguration on Jan. 20. The calls in Congress, however, underscore the extent to which lawmakers are reeling and furious with the President in the wake of the devastation at the Capitol on Wednesday.

Watch the moment:

2:11 p.m. ET, January 7, 2021

Biden calls Jan. 6 one of the "darkest days in the history of our nation"

From CNN's Sarah Mucha

Trump supporters storm the U.S. Capitol on January 6 in Washington, DC. Samuel Corum/Getty Images

President-elect Joe Biden began his remarks Thursday before introducing members of his judiciary team by addressing the siege on Capitol Hill Wednesday, admonishing President Trump for inciting the violence and condemning the rioters.

“It was not dissent, it was not disorder, it was not protest,” he said. “It was chaos. Don’t dare call them protesters. They were a riotous mob. Insurrectionists. Domestic terrorists.”

Biden called yesterday one of the darkest days in the history of our nation and reiterated that it was an “unprecedented assault on our democracy.”

“I wish we could say we couldn’t see it coming. But that wasn’t true. We could see it coming," he said.

Biden said that he will not address questions regarding the invocation of the 25th Amendment against President Trump.

Biden had harsh words for Trump, condemning him for attacking the free press and independent judiciary and using tactics long-used by autocrats and dictators all over the world.

2:11 p.m. ET, January 7, 2021

Treasury Secretary Mnuchin not planning to resign, source says

From CNN's Kevin Liptak

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin gives a statement following his meeting meeting with the Israeli prime minister in Jerusalem, on January 7. Emil Salman/Pool/AFP/Getty Images

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin is not expected to resign and plans to serve out the administration, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Mnuchin is currently abroad on a multi-country swing but called the violence in Washington "completely unacceptable" during a stop in Israel on Wednesday.

Earlier today, Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao became the first Trump Cabinet member to resign in wake of President Trump's response to a mob of his supporters breaching the Capitol.

2:07 p.m. ET, January 7, 2021

Biden: Trump incited "a mob to attack" the Capitol and "threaten" Congress

President-elect Joe Biden delivers remarks at The Queen theater on January 7 in Wilmington, Delaware. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

President-elect Joe Biden said today that President Trump incited "a mob to attack the Capitol."

He continued, saying Trump's intention was to "threaten elected representatives of the people of this nation, and even the vice president, to stop the Congress from ratifying the will of the American people and the just completed free and fair election."

"Trying to use a mob to silence the voices of nearly 160 million Americans, who summoned the courage in the face of a pandemic, that threatened their health and their lives to cast that sacred ballot," he said.

He called the Trump-inspired attack an "assault on Democracy."

2:47 p.m. ET, January 7, 2021

Democrat calls for impeachment: "It's never too late to do the right thing"

From CNN's Adrienne Vogt

Democratic Rep. Seth Moulton said impeachment proceedings against President Trump should move forward, and the 25th Amendment should be invoked as well.

“The President of the United States, just down Pennsylvania Avenue, called on his supporters to attack the United States Capitol. He refused to call out the National Guard to protect our government. He was the one behind an attempted coup. That's why the commander in chief needs to be relieved of duty,” Moulton said to CNN’s Brianna Keilar.

Moulton said Trump failed to protect the government and the American people, and action is needed as a precedent for future presidents.

“It’s never too late to do the right thing; it’s never too late in America to uphold the law. We are a country where the law applies to everyone. That's why if the President breaks the law, he should be impeached. We should go through that,” Moulton said.

1:52 p.m. ET, January 7, 2021

McConnell calls for investigation into Capitol security breach

From CNN's Alex Rogers

Demonstrators breaches barricades to enter the U.S. Capitol during a protest at the Ellipse in Washington, D.C., on January 6. Ting Shen/Bloomberg/Getty Images

In a new statement Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell said that an investigation into yesterday's security breach is needed and that bipartisan discussions have begun.

"The ultimate blame for yesterday lies with the unhinged criminals who broke down doors, trampled our nation’s flag, fought with law enforcement, and tried to disrupt our democracy, and with those who incited them. But this fact does not and will not preclude our addressing the shocking failures in the Capitol’s security posture and protocols," McConnell said.

Calls grow for Trump's removal after Capitol riot