America is still trying to process what happened during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol in Washington, D.C. As the nation looks back on the riot a year later, lawmakers are answering how the event has affected the nation’s outlook on democracy.

When supporters of President Trump stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, @AP had nine photographers on the scene.

They shot hundreds of photos that were transmitted within minutes, giving the world front-row seats to the unfolding chaos.

SEE MORE: https://t.co/gwv2mZXSKK
pic.twitter.com/RQ4txcTGpj

— The Associated Press (@AP) January 6, 2022

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris delivered remarks Thursday morning, examining the reasons behind the insurrection and its ongoing effects.

"On Jan. 6, we all saw what our nation would look like if the forces who seek to dismantle our democracy are successful — the lawlessness, the violence, the chaos," Harris said in her speech, per CNN.

"What the extremists who roamed these halls targeted was not only the lives of elected leaders. What they sought to degrade and destroy was not only a building, hallowed as it is. What they were assaulting were the institutions, the values, the ideals, that generations of Americans have marched, picketed and shed blood to establish and defend," she continued.

Both leaders discussed the current state of democracy, describing it as “fragile” and in dire need of protection as other countries like China and Russia look to America to watch its potential downfall.

Jan-6

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