MUSCAT, Oman — Iran and the United States began in-depth negotiations in Oman over Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program on Saturday, talks that likely will hinge on the Islamic Republic’s enrichment of uranium.

Iranian state television reported the talks had begun in Muscat, the mountain-wrapped capital of this sultanate on the eastern edge of the Arabian Peninsula. However, neither Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi nor U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff offered any immediate specifics or details on the talks that they’ll lead.

Araghchi arrived Friday in Oman and met with Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi, who has mediated the two previous round of talks in Muscat and Rome. Araghchi then visited the Muscat International Book Fair, surrounded by television cameras and photojournalists. Video late Saturday morning showed Araghchi heading to the talks.

Witkoff was in Moscow on Friday meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin. He arrived Saturday to Oman, where the talks were expected to start in the coming hours, a source familiar with Witkoff’s travels told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the closed-door negotiations.

The talks seek to limit Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of some of the crushing economic sanctions the U.S. has imposed on the Islamic Republic closing in on half a century of enmity.

U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened to unleash airstrikes targeting Iran’s program if a deal isn’t reached. Iranian officials increasingly warn that they could pursue a nuclear weapon with their stockpile of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade levels.

Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers did limit Tehran’s program. However, Trump unilaterally withdrew from it in 2018, setting in motion years of attacks and tensions. The wider Middle East also remains on edge over the devastating Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.

Trump, traveling to Rome for the funeral of Pope Francis, again said he hoped negotiations would lead to a new nuclear deal. However, he still held out the possibility of a military strike if they didn’t.

“The Iran situation is coming out very well,” Trump said on Air Force One. “We’ve had a lot of talks with them and I think we’re going to have a deal. I’d much rather have a deal than the other alternative. That would be good for humanity.”

He added: “There are some people that want to make a different kind of a deal — a much nastier deal — and I don’t want that to happen to Iran if we can avoid it.”

While Araghchi and Witkoff are again expected to speak through the Omanis, experts on both sides also will begin negotiating details of a possible deal.

From the Iranian side, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-e Ravanchi will lead Tehran’s expert team, said Mohammad Golzari, an Iranian government official. Takht-e Ravanchi took part in the 2015 nuclear talks.

The U.S. technical team, which is expected to arrive in Oman on Friday, will be led by Michael Anton, the director of U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s policy planning staff. Anton does not have the nuclear policy experience of those who led America’s efforts in the 2015 talks.

Iran has insisted that keeping its enrichment is key. But Witkoff has muddied the issue by first suggesting in a television interview that Iran could enrich uranium at 3.67%, then later saying that all enrichment must stop. That demand all enrichment stop also has been repeated by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

However, Iranians remain hopeful the talks could be successful, as the Iranian rial has rebounded from historic lows during which it took over 1 million rial to buy $1.

“It’s OK to negotiate, to make the nuclear program smaller or bigger, and reach a deal,” Tehran resident Farzin Keivan said. “Of course we shouldn’t give them everything. After all, we’ve suffered a lot for this program.”

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Associated Press writer Amir Vahdat in Tehran, Iran, contributed to this report.

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The Associated Press receives support for nuclear security coverage from the Carnegie Corporation of New York and Outrider Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

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Additional AP coverage of the nuclear landscape: https://apnews.com/projects/the-new-nuclear-landscape/

MUSCAT, Oman — Negotiations between Iran and the United States over Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program will return Saturday to the secluded sultanate of Oman, where experts on both sides will start hammering the technical details of any possible deal.

The talks seek to limit Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of some of the crushing economic sanctions the U.S. has imposed on the Islamic Republic closing in on half a century of enmity. Trump repeatedly has threatened to unleash airstrikes targeting Iran’s program if a deal isn’t reached. Iranian officials increasingly warn that they could pursue a nuclear weapon with their stockpile of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade levels.

Neither Iran nor the U.S. have offered any explanation on why the talks will return to the Omani capital of Muscat, nestled in the Hajar Mountains. Oman has been a mediator between the countries. Last weekend’s talks in Rome offered a more-equal flight distance between Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff, who are leading the negotiations.

But Rome remains in mourning after the death of Pope Francis, whose funeral will be Saturday. And Iranian state television, in covering last weekend’s talks, complained at length on air about the “paparazzi” gathered across the street from the Omani Embassy in Rome’s Camilluccia neighborhood.

“As you can see, unlike the first round of talks where the presence of journalists was limited and the Omanis had special management in place to prevent a large and chaotic media presence from disrupting the negotiations, this time in Rome, Italy, that kind of control hasn’t been applied,” said Hosnieh Sadat Shobeiri, an Iranian state TV journalist in gray, all-encompassing chador.

“Because of the crowd we’re seeing here, with media outlets from various countries — including some that are anti-Iran — it’s possible that we’ll hear more conflicting reports and news aimed at disrupting the talks coming out of Rome compared to Oman.”

The Muscat talks come as Iran appears to have lined up Chinese and Russian support. Araghchi traveled to Moscow last week and this week visited Beijing.

On Thursday, Chinese, Iran and Russian representatives met the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog that likely will verify compliance with any accord like it did with Tehran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. That deal included China and Russia, as well as France, Germany and the United Kingdom.

However, Iran has greatly restricted the IAEA’s inspections — leading to fears internationally that centrifuges and other nuclear material could be diverted.

The IAEA offered no readout from the talks, but China’s state-run Xinhua news agency on Friday described the three nations as saying the agency has “the necessary potential and expertise to contribute constructively to this process.”

“China, Russia and Iran emphasized that political and diplomatic engagement based on mutual respect remains the only viable and practical path for resolving the Iran nuclear issue,” the report said. It added that China respects Iran’s “right to the peaceful use of nuclear energy.”

The Trump administration has kept France, Germany and the U.K. out of its direct negotiations with Iran, something similarly reflected in Witkoff’s negotiations with Russia over ending its war on Ukraine.

Araghchi meanwhile has said he’s open to visiting Berlin, London and Paris to discuss the negotiations.

“The ball is now in the E3’s court,” Araghchi wrote on the social platform X on Thursday, using an acronym for the countries. “They have an opportunity to do away with the grip of Special Interest groups and forge a different path. How we act at this critical junction is likely to define the foreseeable future.”

The U.S. technical team was expected to arrive in Oman on Friday ahead of the talks Saturday. They’ll be led by Michael Anton, the director of U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s policy planning staff. Anton does not have the nuclear policy experience of those who led America’s efforts in the 2015 talks. However, he was an early supporter of Trump, describing the 2016 election as a “charge the cockpit or you die” vote.

“A Hillary Clinton presidency is Russian Roulette with a semi-auto,” Anton wrote. “With Trump, at least you can spin the cylinder and take your chances.”

He also criticized “Iran sycophancy” in the same essay.

Rubio, speaking on a podcast released this week, also kept up a Trump line that Iran needed to stop its enrichment of uranium entirely.

“If Iran wants a civil nuclear program, they can have one just like many other countries can have one, and that is they import enriched material,” Rubio said.

But Iran has insisted that keeping its enrichment is key. Witkoff also has muddied the issue by first suggesting in a television interview that Iran could enrich uranium at 3.67%, then later saying that all enrichment must stop.

Meanwhile, one more wildcard is Israel, whose devastating war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip grinds on. Trump initially announced the Iran talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his side. But Israel, which for years has targeted Iran’s nuclear program with attacks on its facilities and scientists, has kept open the possibility of airstrikes to destroy Tehran’s enrichment sites.

On Monday, Israel’s military conducted drills preparing for possible new Iranian missile attacks, the country’s public broadcaster KAN reported.

“Our security services are on high alert given past instances of attempted sabotage and assassination operations designed to provoke a legitimate response,” Araghchi wrote Wednesday on X.

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The Associated Press receives support for nuclear security coverage from the Carnegie Corporation of New York and Outrider Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

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Additional AP coverage of the nuclear landscape: https://apnews.com/projects/the-new-nuclear-landscape/

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic — At least 13 people died and more than 70 were injured after a roof fell at a discotheque in the capital of the Dominican Republic early Tuesday, authorities said.

Crews were searching for potential survivors in the rubble at Jet Set, said Juan Manuel Méndez, director of the Center of Emergency Operations.

“We presume that many of them are still alive, and that is why the authorities here will not give up until not a single person remains under that rubble,” he said.

Among the injured is merengue singer Rubby Pérez, who was performing when the roof collapsed.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Elon Musk called Thursday to “delete entire agencies” from the United States’ federal government as part of his push under President Donald Trump to radically cut spending and restructure its priorities.

Musk offered a wide-ranging survey via a videocall to the World Governments Summit in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, of what he described as the priorities of the Trump administration interspersed with multiple references to “thermonuclear warfare” and the possible dangers of artificial intelligence.

“We really have here rule of the bureaucracy as opposed to rule of the people — democracy,” Musk said, wearing a black T-shirt that read: “Tech Support.” He also joked that he was the “White House’s tech support,” borrowing from his profile on the social platform X, which he owns.

“I think we do need to delete entire agencies as opposed to leave a lot of them behind,” Musk said. “If we don’t remove the roots of the weed, then it’s easy for the weed to grow back.”

While Musk has spoken to the summit in the past, his appearance Thursday comes as he has consolidated control over large swaths of the government with Trump’s blessing since assuming leadership of the Department of Government Efficiency. That’s included sidelining career officials, gaining access to sensitive databases and inviting a constitutional clash over the limits of presidential authority.

Musk’s new role imbued his comments with more weight beyond being the world’s wealthiest person through his investments in SpaceX and electric carmaker Tesla.

His remarks also offered a more-isolationist view of American power in the Middle East, where the U.S. has fought wars in both Afghanistan and Iraq since the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.

“A lot of attention has been on USAID for example,” Musk said, referring to Trump’s dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development. “There’s like the National Endowment for Democracy. But I’m like, ‘Okay, well, how much democracy have they achieved lately?’”

He added that the U.S. under Trump is “less interested in interfering with the affairs of other countries.”

There are “times the United States has been kind of pushy in international affairs, which may resonate with some members of the audience,” Musk said, speaking to the crowd in the UAE, an autocratically ruled nation of seven sheikhdoms.

“Basically, America should mind its own business, rather than push for regime change all over the place,” he said.

He also noted the Trump administration’s focus on eliminating diversity, equity and inclusion work, at one point linking it to AI.

“If hypothetically, AI is designed for DEI, you know, diversity at all costs, it could decide that there’s too many men in power and execute them,” Musk said.

On AI, Musk said he believed X’s newly updated AI chatbot, Grok 3, would be ready in about two weeks, calling it at one point “kind of scary.” He criticized Sam Altman’s management of OpenAI, which Musk just led a $97.4 billion takeover bid for, describing it as akin to a nonprofit aimed at saving the Amazon rainforest becoming a “lumber company that chops down the trees.”

Musk also announced plans for a “Dubai Loop” project in line with his work in the Boring Company — which is digging tunnels in Las Vegas to speed transit. However, he and the Emirati government official speaking with him offered no immediate details of the plan.

“It’s going to be like a wormhole,” Musk promised. “You just wormhole from one part of the city — boom — and you’re out in another part of the city.”

President Donald Trump has just started his second term, his last one permitted under the U.S. Constitution. But he’s already started making quips about serving a third one.

“Am I allowed to run again?” Trump joked during the House Republican retreat in Florida last month. Whether teasing or taunting, it seems to be part of a pattern. Just a week after he won election last fall, Trump suggested in a meeting with House Republicans that he might want to stick around after his second term was over.

“I suspect I won’t be running again unless you say, ‘He’s so good we got to figure something else out,’” Trump said to laughs from the lawmakers.

Over the years, Trump and his supporters have often joked about him serving more than his two constitutionally permitted terms. But his musings often spark alarm among his critics, given that he unsuccessfully tried to overturn his 2020 election loss and has since pardoned supporters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

But Trump, who will be 82 when his term ends, has repeatedly said that this will be his last term. Trying for another also would flatly violate the Constitution.

Here are some questions and answers related to Trump’s occasional comments about a third term:

“No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice,” begins the 22nd Amendment, adopted after President Franklin Delano Roosevelt was elected four times in a row. He was last elected in 1944.

It’s a fairly straightforward ban on serving more than two terms. Some Trump supporters argue the language is meant to apply only to two consecutive terms because Roosevelt’s terms were consecutive, but notably that’s not what the amendment says.

Others contend that because the ban is just on being “elected” more than twice, Trump could run as the next president’s vice president and, if the ticket won, could simply replace that person if he or she resigns. To put it mildly, that would be quite a complex plan to pull off, in no small part because Trump would be 82 during the next election, a year older than former President Joe Biden was during last year’s campaign.

At least one Republican in Congress has been bold enough to propose a constitutional amendment that would allow Trump to seek another term. It has no chance of going anywhere, given the high bar for amending the Constitution.

Even assuming Trump would attempt another run, a combination of election officials and courts would virtually ensure that he stayed off the ballot.

State officials have long kept would-be candidates off presidential ballots if they didn’t meet the basic constitutional criteria, such as being a natural-born U.S. citizen or being at least 35 years old. They would do the same with someone clearly violating the limit on presidential terms.

A version of this unfolded in 2023, when a few states tried to keep Trump off the ballot because they found he violated the 14th Amendment’s ban on officials who engaged in insurrection. The U.S. Supreme Court reversed those decisions because no one had ever used the insurrection clause on a presidential candidate before and there were a lot of legal questions about its implementation.

There would be no similar questions about the meaning of the 22nd Amendment, said Derek Muller, a professor at Notre Dame Law School.

“You would not have the factual disputes, so it would be much wider,” Muller said of the number of states keeping Trump off their ballots. “I’m not persuaded the Supreme Court is going to roll over.”

Trump has a long history of taunting his critics to flex his power, but there also could be a strategic reason for his keeping the third-term discussion alive.

Trump is a lame duck president in his final term. Because these politicians will never be on the ballot for the same office again, their political clout usually wanes quickly. The third-term flirtation is a way to try to convince people that Trump will be around in the future.

Trump’s aggressive actions at the start of his new term shows that Trump knows his time is dwindling, Muller said.

“He’s governing like he’s a lame duck right now, with nothing to lose,” Muller said.

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As TikTok faces existential threats in Western markets, its community flees to RedNote — the international version of Xiaohongshu. It’s a lifestyle haven: glossy posts, curated recommendations and a familiar influencer culture.

But dig a little deeper, and the reality becomes far more insidious. RedNote isn’t just another app; it’s a tightly controlled platform that exports censorship, reshapes youth culture, and quietly undermines the democratic ideals its community takes for granted.

TikTok And RedNote: Freedom In Disguise

RedNote’s appeal lies in its resemblance to TikTok — a space for creativity, self-expression and viral content.

However, where TikTok is a freewheeling marketplace of ideas, RedNote operates within a fundamentally different framework. As a Chinese-owned platform, its privacy policy and community guidelines aren’t just corporate boilerplate; they’re a statement of compliance with China’s strict regulatory and censorship laws. Every post, like, and comment exists in an ecosystem designed to prioritize “core socialist values” over freedom of speech.

For Westerners, especially younger ones, this reality is initially invisible. Over time, RedNote’s content moderation creates an environment where dissent is suppressed and self-censorship flourishes. For instance, posts addressing politically sensitive issues, such as criticism of Chinese cybersecurity laws or advocacy for human rights in Xinjiang, have reportedly been flagged or removed. In a report by China Digital Times, RedNote’s (Xiaohongshu) content moderation includes strict guidelines for handling “sudden incidents,” a term used to describe politically or socially sensitive topics. A leaked internal document revealed that the platform actively censors discussions that could be deemed controversial or destabilizing, aligning its practices with China’s broader regulatory framework.

This systematic approach conditions young people to self-censor and avoid raising sensitive topics altogether, creating an environment where control is exercised subtly but pervasively. Over time, such practices redraw the boundaries of what young people consider safe or acceptable to discuss. According to Reuter’s, the platform’s algorithms prioritize content aligned with state-approved narratives while suppressing more controversial viewpoints, effectively redrawing the boundaries of acceptable thought.

TikTok And RedNote: The Illusion Of Consent

The danger lies in normalizing this trade-off. Young people, often eager for connection and expression, may not fully grasp what they consent to. RedNote’s privacy policy explicitly states that the platform collects a wide range of personal information, including location data, browsing habits, and interactions with content. Additionally, it tracks device information, such as IP addresses and device identifiers, to “enhance user experience.” While this may seem routine, the policy also grants the platform the right to share this data with “third-party service providers” or “relevant government authorities,” raising significant privacy concerns.

Trading access for autonomy—whether through extensive data collection or content moderation—creates a dangerous precedent. Subtle prompts during onboarding or daily use might seem harmless, like agreeing to vague terms or allowing personalized recommendations, but these interactions steadily erode user autonomy. Moreover, RedNote’s terms include provisions to “maintain a safe and harmonious community environment,” a phrase that aligns closely with China’s strict regulatory framework.

Over time, the illusion of freedom—where people feel in control but operate within tightly defined boundaries—risks becoming the new standard for social media. Consent without transparency isn’t freedom; it’s a one-sided agreement that grants platforms control, cloaked in the illusion of choice. On RedNote, people unwittingly trade autonomy for curated convenience, setting a dangerous precedent for the future of digital engagement.

RedNote: Hijacking Youth Culture

The most troubling aspect of RedNote’s rise is its influence on young people. This generation grew up with social media as a megaphone for individuality and activism. But what happens when that megaphone is muted? Platforms like RedNote aren’t alone in their influence on youth; concerns about social media and adolescent mental health have been well-documented.

RedNote’s algorithms do more than recommend content — they shape perceptions. By prioritizing sanitized, state-approved narratives, they normalize conformity and discourage the kind of questioning that fuels progress. According to the New York Times, in live group chats under the hashtag “#TikTokRefugee,” participants discussed topics like urban safety and censorship, often sharing tips on how to “play by the rules” to avoid bans — tacitly normalizing self-censorship as a survival tactic.

At first glance, the forum seemed open and lively, with people sharing tips on navigating RedNote’s Mandarin-based interface or debating cultural differences. But the platform’s design subtly influenced the conversation. Posts addressing politically sensitive issues, such as the Chinese government’s role in internet regulation, were flagged or quietly removed.

Meanwhile, comments from Chinese people frequently reinforced the narrative that RedNote was “a safe and harmonious space” for discussions, reflecting the state-approved language used across the platform. This juxtaposition of guarded curiosity from Westerners and state-sanctioned optimism from Chinese people reveals the platform’s engineered boundaries for acceptable dialogue. Even the appearance of a freewheeling exchange is carefully curated, subtly conditioning participants to adapt to its constraints.

Young people, drawn by influencers and trends, may not realize they’re engaging with a platform that subtly conditions them to accept limits on their freedom. Influencers on RedNote who gain popularity tend to avoid politically sensitive topics to maintain their standing on the platform. As these behaviors are modeled for younger audiences, the boundaries of permissible discourse are reinforced, creating a culture where conformity is rewarded, and challenging the status quo is discouraged.

The result? A generation less inclined to challenge authority or fight for democratic ideals.

RedNote: A Broader Threat to Democracy

RedNote isn’t just a risk to individuals; it’s a risk to societies. The platform’s rapid growth among Westerners represents a subtle but significant shift in the global digital landscape. By exporting a content control and surveillance model, RedNote challenges the open exchange of ideas on which democracy depends.

This isn’t fearmongering; it reflects the platform’s design. RedNote collects vast amounts of user data, operates under laws requiring cooperation with Chinese authorities, and employs content moderation practices that align with state interests.

Platforms like RedNote are a perfect storm for younger people, whose brains are still developing, particularly in areas like impulse control and critical thinking. AI systems are being engineered to exploit psychological weaknesses with surgical precision, shaping behavior, emotions, and perceptions in ways that the community themselves may not fully understand.

The result? A generation molded by algorithms designed to reward conformity, stifle dissent and embed surveillance into their daily lives—all under the guise of connection and inspiration. It’s like pitting the developing human frontal lobe against an AI optimized for manipulation—a deeply unbalanced equation with far-reaching implications.

As RedNote gains traction, it becomes a gateway for authoritarian influence, subtly but profoundly reshaping cultural and political landscapes far beyond its borders.

Joining RedNote has also brought Westerners closer to Chinese citizens than ever before. While this cross-cultural dialogue is unique, it occurs within a controlled environment, shaping perceptions in subtle but significant ways. By presenting a curated view of acceptable content, RedNote risks creating a global audience accustomed to censorship as the norm.

Protecting The Future

The rise of RedNote demands action—not panic, but thoughtful, decisive measures to safeguard people and democratic principles. Governments must lead the charge by enforcing transparency and establishing global digital privacy and data sovereignty standards. Collaboration between nations could help regulate platforms like RedNote, ensuring accountability for data-sharing practices and compliance with international human rights standards.

Educators and parents also play a critical role. Schools must integrate digital literacy into their curriculums, teaching young people to recognize platform biases, question what they consume, and understand the risks of unchecked online behavior. Parents should reinforce this at home, encouraging open conversations about digital safety and the importance of critical thinking in online spaces.

But the most immediate power lies with individuals. People must begin asking hard questions about the platforms they trust:

• Who owns them?
• What are they doing with our data?
• Most importantly, who are the interests they truly serve?

Governments must enforce transparency, and educators and parents must prepare young people to navigate these platforms critically. Experts have highlighted strategies for creating safer digital environments to protect kids from these risks.

By demanding platforms that reflect their values and foster genuine creativity, communities can help reshape the digital landscape into one that prioritizes freedom over control.

RedNote: What’s Next

RedNote might look like the next big thing, but its impact reaches far beyond hashtags and trending posts. It’s not just an app—it’s a test of how we, as a global society, respond to the digital challenges of our time.

Governments must act swiftly to enforce transparency, establish global data privacy standards, and hold platforms accountable for their practices. Educators and parents must equip young people with the tools to critically evaluate digital platforms, empowering them to navigate an increasingly complex online world with informed skepticism. But the power to shape the future doesn’t rest with institutions alone. It’s in the hands of people who demand platforms that reflect their values, foster genuine creativity, and uphold democratic principles.

The future of the internet is being written today. Recognizing the risks and acting decisively could transform RedNote into a wake-up call for a better, freer digital tomorrow. RedNote is a wake-up call to scrutinize the platforms we trust—because the choices we make today will shape the freedoms we live with tomorrow.

President Joe Biden is decrying what he calls an “unrelenting effort” to downplay a mob of Donald Trump supporters overrunning the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to block certification of the 2020 election — seeking to contrast that day’s chaos with what he promises will be an orderly transition returning Trump to power for a second term.

In an opinion piece published Sunday in The Washington Post, Biden recalled Jan. 6, 2021, writing that “violent insurrectionists attacked the Capitol.”

“We should be proud that our democracy withstood this assault,” Biden wrote. “And we should be glad we will not see such a shameful attack again this year.”

Congress will convene amid snow in Washington on Monday to certify Trump’s victory in November’s election — in a session presided over by the candidate he defeated, Vice President Kamala Harris. No violence, or even procedural objections, are expected this time, marking a return to a U.S. tradition that launches the peaceful transfer of presidential power.

That’s despite Trump continuing to deny that he lost to Biden in 2020, already musing publicly about staying beyond the Constitution’s two-term White House limit, and promising to pardon some of the more than 1,250 people who have pleaded guilty or were convicted of crimes for the Capitol siege.

In his opinion piece, Biden says of the certification process, “After what we all witnessed on Jan. 6, 2021, we know we can never again take it for granted.” He doesn’t mention Trump directly but says “an unrelenting effort has been underway to rewrite — even erase — the history of that day.”

“To tell us we didn’t see what we all saw with our own eyes,” Biden wrote. “We cannot allow the truth to be lost.”

He vowed that the “election will be certified peacefully. I have invited the incoming president to the White House on the morning of Jan. 20, and I will be present for his inauguration that afternoon,” even though Trump skipped Biden’s inauguration in 2021.

“But on this day, we cannot forget,” Biden added. “We should commit to remembering Jan. 6, 2021, every year. To remember it as a day when our democracy was put to the test and prevailed. To remember that democracy — even in America — is never guaranteed.”

The published piece followed Biden telling reporters at the White House earlier Sunday that the history of what occurred on Jan. 6, 2021, “should not be rewritten” and adding, “I don’t think it should be forgotten.”

Biden spent much of 2024 warning voters that Trump was a serious threat to the nation’s democracy. And this past week, the president awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal to Liz Cheney and Bennie Thompson, leaders of the congressional investigation into the Capitol riot.

As he did with his opinion piece, Biden used his Sunday comments to reporters to stress that his administration is overseeing a peaceful handover of power — unlike the last one.

”I’ve reached out to make sure the smooth transition,” Biden said of Trump’s incoming administration. “We’ve got to get back to basic, normal transfer of power.”

Asked if he still viewed his soon-to-be successor in the White House as a threat to democracy, Biden responded, “I think what he did was a genuine threat to democracy. I’m hopeful we’re beyond that now.”

WASHINGTON — As Congress convenes amid a winter storm to certify President-elect Donald Trump ‘s election, the legacy of Jan. 6 hangs over the proceedings with an extraordinary fact: The candidate who tried to overturn the previous election won this time, and is legitimately returning to power.

Lawmakers will gather noontime Monday under the tightest national security level possible. Layers of tall black fencing flank the U.S. Capitol complex in a stark reminder of what happened four years ago, when a defeated Trump sent his mob to “fight like hell” in what became the most gruesome attack on the seat of American democracy in 200 years.

No violence, protests or even procedural objections in Congress are expected this time. Republicans from the highest levels of power who challenged the 2020 election results when Trump lost to President Joe Biden have no qualms this year after he defeated Vice President Kamala Harris.

And Democrats frustrated by Trump’s 312-226 Electoral College victory nevertheless accept the choice of the American voters. Even the threat of a massive snowstorm barreling down on the region wasn’t expected to interfere with Jan. 6, the day set by law to certify the vote.

“Whether we’re in a blizzard or not, we are going to be in that chamber making sure this is done,” House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican who helped lead Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election, said Sunday on Fox News.

The day’s return to a U.S. tradition that launches the peaceful transfer of presidential power comes with an asterisk as Trump prepares to take office in two weeks with a revived sense of authority. He denies that he lost four years ago, muses about staying beyond the Constitution’s two-term White House limit and promises to pardon some of the more than 1,250 people who have pleaded guilty or were convicted of crimes for the Capitol siege.

What’s unclear is if Jan. 6, 2021 was the anomaly, the year Americans violently attacked their own government, or if this year’s expected calm becomes the outlier. The U.S. is struggling to cope with its political and cultural differences at a time when democracy worldwide is threatened. Trump calls Jan. 6, 2021 a “day of love.”

“We should not be lulled into complacency,” said Ian Bassin, executive director of the cross-ideological nonprofit Protect Democracy.

He and others have warned that it is historically unprecedented for U.S. voters to do what they did in November, reelecting Trump after he publicly refused to step aside last time. Returning to power an emboldened leader who has demonstrated his unwillingness to give it up “is an unprecedentedly dangerous move for a free country to voluntarily take,” Bassin said.

Biden, speaking Sunday at events at the White House, called Jan. 6, 2021 “one of the toughest days in American history.”

“We’ve got to get back to the basic, normal transfer of power,” Biden said. What Trump did last time, Biden said, “was a genuine threat to democracy. I’m hopeful we’re beyond that now.”

Still, American democracy has proven to be resilient, and Congress, the branch of government closest to the people, will come together to affirm the choice of Americans.

With pomp and tradition, the day is expected to unfold as it has countless times before, with the arrival of ceremonial mahogany boxes filled with the electoral certificates from the states — boxes that staff were frantically grabbing and protecting as Trump’s mob stormed the building last time.

Senators will walk across the Capitol — which four years ago had filled with roaming rioters, some defecating and menacingly calling out for leaders, others engaging in hand-to-hand combat with police — to the House to begin certifying the vote.

Harris will preside over the counting, as is the requirement for the vice president, and certify her own defeat — much the way Democrat Al Gore did in 2001 and Republican Richard Nixon in 1961.

She will stand at the dais where then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi was abruptly rushed to safety last time as the mob closed in and lawmakers fumbled to put on gas masks and flee, and shots rang out as police killed Ashli Babbitt, a Trump supporter trying to climb through a broken glass door toward the chamber.

There are new procedural rules in place in the aftermath of what happened four years ago, when Republicans parroting Trump’s lie that the election was fraudulent challenged the results their own states had certified.

Under changes to the Electoral Count Act, it now requires one-fifth of lawmakers, instead of just one in each chamber, to raise any objections to election results. With security as tight as it is for the Super Bowl or the Olympics, law enforcement is on high alert for intruders. No tourists will be allowed.

But none of that is expected to be necessary.

Republicans, who met with Trump behind closed doors at the White House before Jan. 6, 2021 to craft a complex plan to challenge his election defeat, have accepted his win this time.

Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., who led the House floor challenge in 2021, said people at the time were so astonished by the election’s outcome and there were “lots of claims and allegations.”

This time, he said, “I think the win was so decisive…. It stifled most of that.”

Democrats, who have raised symbolic objections in the past, including during the disputed 2000 election that Gore lost to George W. Bush and ultimately decided by the Supreme Court, have no intention of objecting. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries has said the Democratic Party is not “infested” with election denialism.

“There are no election deniers on our side of the aisle,” Jeffries said on the first day of the new Congress, to applause from Democrats in the chamber.

“You see, one should love America when you win and when you lose. That’s the patriotic thing to do,” Jeffries said.

Last time, far-right militias helped lead the mob to break into the Capitol in a war-zone-like scene. Officers have described being crushed and pepper-sprayed and beaten with Trump flag poles, “ slipping in other people’s blood.”

Leaders of the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys have been convicted of seditious conspiracy and sentenced to lengthy prison terms. Many others faced prison, probation, home confinement or other penalties.

Those Republicans who engineered the legal challenges to Trump’s defeat still stand by their actions, celebrated in Trump circles, despite the grave costs to their personal and professional livelihoods.

Several including disbarred lawyer Rudy Giuliani and John Eastman, and indicted-but-pardoned Michael Flynn met over the weekend at Trump’s private club Mar-a-Lago for a film screening about the 2020 election.

Trump was impeached by the House on the charge of inciting an insurrection that day, but acquitted by the Senate. At the time, GOP leader Mitch McConnell blamed Trump for the siege but said his culpability was for the courts to decide.

Federal prosecutors subsequently issued a four-count indictment of Trump for working to overturn the election, including for conspiracy to defraud the United States, but special counsel Jack Smith was forced to pare back the case once the Supreme Court ruled that a president has broad immunity for actions taken in office.

Smith last month withdrew the case after Trump won reelection, adhering to Justice Department guidelines that sitting presidents cannot be prosecuted.

Biden, in one of his outgoing acts, awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal to Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., and former Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., who had been the chair and vice chair of the congressional committee that conducted an investigation into Jan. 6, 2021.

Trump has said those who worked on the Jan. 6 committee should be locked up.

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Associated Press writers Fatima Hussein and Ashraf Khalil contributed to this report.