this is bbc news — welcome if you're watching here in the uk or around the globe. i'm lewis vaughanjones — our top stories: us president elect, joe biden addresses supporters for the first time since his election win. mr biden says he aims not to divide — but to unify. for all those of you who voted for president trump, i understand the disappointment tonight. we have to stop treating our opponents as our enemies. they are not our enemies, they are americans. kamala harris, who will make history by becoming the first female vice president, says voters have sent america's children a clear message — to dream with ambition. see yourselves in a way that others may not, simply because they have

never seen it before, but know that we will applaud you every step of the way. the new way as the biden way! the victory for mr biden and his running mate sparked nationwide celebrations among democratic supporters. earlier, president trump returned to the white house after playing golf. he's claimed again, without evidence, that he won the election. his supporters say they haven't given up. we start with the words of president—electjoe biden. he said... "i pledge to be a president who doesn't see red states and blue states, only the united states" — the unifying words ofjoe biden

after taking to the stage in his first speech as america's new president—elect. the theme of unity pretty much ran through his first speech is america's new president—elect. addressing a huge crowd near his home in delaware, he declared a victory for the american people and pledged to restore the country's soul. donald trump, the first us president for nearly 30 years not to win a second term, has yet to concede, but in a statement from the white house in the last couple of hours, an official said that the president will "accept the results of a free and fair election." here's some of what joe biden had to say. i will govern as an american president. i will work as hard for those who did not vote for me as those who did. let this grim air of demonisation in america begin to end, here and now. cheering and applause. car horns. refusal of democrats and

republicans to co—operate with one another is not some mysterious force beyond our control, it's a decision, a choice we make and if we can decide not to co—operate, then we can decide to co—operate and i believe that this is part of the mandate given to us from the american people. they want us to co—operate in their interests, and that's the choice i'll make, and i'll call on congress, democrats and republicans alike, to make that choice with me. the american story is about slow yet steadily widening opportunities in america and, make no mistake, too many dreams have been deferred for too long. we must make the promise of the country real for everybody, no matter their race, their ethnicity, theirfaith, their identity or their disability.

folks, america has always been shaped by inflection points, by moments in time where we've made hard decisions about who we are and what we want to be. lincoln in 1860, coming to save the union. fdr in 1932, promising a beleaguered country a new deal. jfk in 1960, pledging a new frontier and, 12 years ago, when barack obama made history, he told us, "yes, we can". .. cheering and applause. car horns. folks, we stand at an inflection point. we have an opportunity to defeat despair, to build a nation of prosperity and purpose. we can do it, i know we can. i have long talked about the battle for the soul of america. we must restore

the soul of america. our nation is shaped by the constant battle between our better angels and our darkest impulses. and what presidents say in this battle matters. it's time for our better angels to prevail. tonight, the whole world is watching america and i believe that at our best, america is a beacon for the globe. we will lead not only by the example of our power, but by the power of our example! car horns and cheering. folks, our work begins with getting covid under control. we cannot repair the economy, restore our vitality or relish life's most precious moments, hugging our children, grandchildren, birthdays, weddings, graduations, all the matters that —— times that matters that —— times that matter most to us until we get

it under control not on monday, i will name a group of leading scientists and experts as transition advisors to help ta ke transition advisors to help take the biden harris covid plan and convert it into a action plan that will start on january 20 2021. that plan will be built on bedrock science, it will be constructed out of compassion, empathy and concern. compassion, empathy and concern. i will spare no effort, none, or any concern. i will spare no effort, none, orany commitment to turnaround this pandemic. let's try and pick through that speech. we can now speak to robin swanson who's a democratic political strategist and former democratic spokesperson. let's ‘s talk let's ‘stalk about the style of that speech. joe biden not known necessarily as a towering orator. what did you make of

it? i think it is one of the best speeches i've ever heard him give. it was dignified, it was unifying and sounded presidential. it made me proud to be an american again. and he clearly, i feel like that speech was as much for trump supporter is as it was for the people who supported him and i feel like that was really important to do, to create that message of unity for all americans. what is fascinating about what you just said and whatjoe biden was saying as well, this reach out to donald trump voters. what he said, actually, america is a mature democracy and reaching out to the other side isjust democracy and reaching out to the other side is just a democracy and reaching out to the other side isjust a basic normal part of the democratic tra nsfer of normal part of the democratic transfer of power. i think what's interesting is we are putting such a focus on it because that wasn't necessarily taken for granted. he said let's give each other a chance, put away the harsh rhetoric,

oui’ put away the harsh rhetoric, our opponents are not enemies. the fact that he has to remind americans of that is probably slightly worrying. what do you make of that? it certainly has been a turbulent and not normal past four years. and so joe biden is a return to normalcy and a return to dignity and a return to a president that we wa nt return to a president that we want our children to look up to and you know, itjust couldn't be more of a contrast than with donald trump and we see him at being a sore loser and that just feels so irrelevant right 110w just feels so irrelevant right now when itjoe biden gave this soaring speech and vice president—elect kamala harris was really motivational as well and soi was really motivational as well and so i do feel like he is a healer and i think he brings things to the table that nobody else does. he has been able to compromise across the aisle for 40 compromise across the aisle for a0 some odd years now. he is a deeply faithful man. he is a man of faith. and i think that

those qualities are really going to speak to folks from across the spectrum, i think that's really important for the healing process for america. and he's got a hugejob in his hand, 71 million people voted for donald trump. yes but 74 million people voted for him and he did at 300 electoral couege and he did at 300 electoral college votes already. in his pile. that's always how elections go and in fact 7a million votes is more than any us president in history so what we saw was incredible turnout, incredible involvement and i think thatjust incredible involvement and i think that just shows how interested people are in america to fix things. covid 19 has torn our country apart and obviously other countries around the world and it's going to ta ke around the world and it's going to take a unity and a president who can unify and bring

everybody together and yet, whether you are a trump supporter or a wide and supported, get everybody to wear a mask, do basic things that are for the good of all humanity and i think his speech tonight wasjust humanity and i think his speech tonight was just the tip of the iceberg for that and you're right, he absolutely has a big job ahead of him. let's move on now to kamala harris. what role has she played in getting the pairof has she played in getting the pair of them to where they are now? i'm super proud of her, she is from my home state of california and as you know she was at an attorney general here in california and then the sitting us senator. i think she is really well—prepared to be vice president of the united states and i think she bring an energy to that ticket. and now we have the first woman elected vice president of the united states, we have a woman of colour, we have a black woman who is also of indian—american descent so i think she brings all kinds of experiences to the table that you can't have

u nless table that you can't have unless you have lived it so i andi unless you have lived it so i and i have always said she has been a juggernaut since i have seen her career in politics takeoff. we have a strange couple of months ahead now in this period where donald trump is still in office, still in the white house. the new presidency doesn't start until january. what happens now for joe biden, kamala harris, what do you think they have got to do you think they have got to do now over the next couple of months while they still don't have any power? yes, i did hear him say in his speech that he and the vice president—elect we re and the vice president—elect were already meeting with experts about covid—19 and i find such reassurance and that, that they are creating their own task force. i imagine that doctor anthony fauci is going to bea doctor anthony fauci is going to be a big part of that and really addressing the problem so they are going to have to get ahead of the problem, they are going to have to hit the ground running. no doubt that donald trump will continue to

throw roadblocks in their way as much as he can use his current power to do so but eyes on the prize and they're ready to go. i mean, joe biden was vice president for eight years so this isn't his first rodeo and i'm confident that he's going to be able to run the government in a way that really helps us recover from where we are right now. robin, thank you so much for your thoughts. great to have you won. robin swanson. allen thank you so much. vice president elect kamala harris also spoke to the crowds. to the woman most responsible for my presence here today, my mother, shyamala gopalan harris, who is always in our hearts... cheering and car horns. when she came here from india at the age of 19, she maybe didn't quite imagine this moment, but she believed so deeply in an america

where a moment like this is possible, and so i am thinking about her and about the generations of women, black women... cheering and applause. asian, white, latina, native american women who, who, throughout our nation's history have paved the way for this moment tonight. women who fought and sacrificed so much for equality, and liberty and justice for all. including the black women who are often, too often, overlooked but so often proved they are the backbone of our democracy. cheering and applause, and car horns. all the women who have worked to secure and protect the right to vote for over a century.

100 years ago with the 19th amendment, 55 years ago with the voting rights act, and now, in 2020, with a new generation of women in our country who cast their ballots and continue to fight for their fundamental right to vote and be heard. cheering and applause, car horns. tonight, i reflect on their struggle, their determination and the strength of their vision to see what can be unburdened by what has been, and i stand on their shoulders and what a testament it is tojoe's character that he had the audacity to break one of the most substantial barriers that exists in our country and select a woman as his vice president. cheering and applause,

car horns. but while i may be the first woman in this office, i will not be the last. crowd roars, car horns. because, every little girl watching tonight sees that this is a country of possibilities and, to the children of our country, regardless of your gender, our country has sent you a clear message, dream with ambition, lead with conviction, and see yourselves in a way others may not, simply because they have never seen it before, but know that we will applaud you every step of the way.

for some context on what that means, here is suzannejohnson cook. former us presidential advisor and who served as the united states ambassador—at—large for international religious freedom. i'm dreaming with ambition and i am leading with conviction and we are applauding kamala harris to get all the way, they are now our president—elect and vice president elect, and how proud we are. i was on president clinton's race initiative over 20 years ago and we were praying for a moment like this, i'm a black woman, and black women have been praying for a moment like this but now our dreams have been realised and we are so excited, jubilant actually. you mentioned there, we heard it and you quoted it again, one of the lines that will live on, talking to children seeing dream with ambition, lead with conviction, she had some of the best lines on a night full of rhetoric and energy from both speakers, messages about the importance of this time in american history and bringing the country

together, that was the overall theme of both the speeches, it's a tall order though, isn't it? it's a tall order but we cannot be the divided states of america, and we talked about how divided our country was before, and we talked about ridding ourselves of the demonisation of america, and i believe this is the team that spoke with their heart. yes it was a speech that was written, but it came from the heart. i have no the passion and compassion of each of them, and i am so excited that they now lead our country, and are prepared to lead our country. i used to ride with then—senator biden on the amtrak when he would come home daily to take care of his children when i was working in the clinton administration, so what we will see is people working on both sides of the aisle because they know him, they know his heart and i think we will get some things done.

0n those things done, let's talk about kamala harris. you know what she represents, and what she represents, and let's talk about what you would like her to actually do. what difference will she make over the next four years? a woman sees life differently to a man so she will bring visions through the eyes of a woman, and she will make sure that there is inclusivity, diversity, equity and inclusion, that is what america is always talking about, we will see that inaction energy will bring family, both of them are in love with their spouses, and their children, and their nieces, and the rest of their family, i think we will see a humanisation, a humanity that comes forth, that has not only about our families but also about yourfamily, and i think that's what everyone is hopeful about, excited about, because we see ourselves in kamala harris, we

see a sister who was unashamedly and unapologetically black, but who is also open to every race, she is intermarried, she has children, a daughter of immigrants, so she brings the whole package, humanity, femininity, elegance, strength, and power, because she has evidence—based leadership, and so we are looking for this team now to be the ones that we hope for that will lead america, not in division, but united together. what about the issue of race? we saw the explosion of the black lives matter movement throughout this year, this appointment as i mentioned before is hugely significant in terms of symbolism, but what about real change? what actually needs to be done? what was saw with black lives matter is what black americans have seen all of our lives, what has happened to us in terms of systemic racism, the rest of the world

got to see, the biden is not so president—elect biden is not ashamed to take that on, he will deal with institutional racism and sexism, and what we will see is some real systemic change, because unless you have someone who really deals with it, puts it on the table, then we will continue to ignore it, they are not afraid of putting it on the table and so we will see some changes, it will start with his administration, but what we will see and who we will see in the white house and the vice president's offers, and then systemically throughout the departments and agencies of the united states, government, so it is my honour and pleasure to really work with them. just lastly because i have to let you go, but briefly, 71 million or so voters voted for donald trump. what is your message to them right now? in an election there will be some who get the most

votes and there will be others who do not. my message to all of those who voted for donald trump is now we will walk together, work together, the hand has been reached out, the branch is reached out to you and i hope you will take it and walk with us. when we work together, we win together of america. we are one and we would love to work with you, so come on over and let's be american, not blue or red, but americans. 0ur our thanks to her that. let's turn to the current incumbent at the white house and pro—trump protesters, who claim that the election has been stolen from them gathered in nevada. 0ur correspondent james clayton has been speaking to some. courtney hollins, you organise this protest, why? myself are quite a few other people across the country, this is a national effort, we are organising the protest here in nevada, arizona, wisconsin, michigan and pennsylvania, the final

battleground states, and we wa nt battleground states, and we want the people to come out and hear the truth, there is a lot of censorship still going on right now online, a lot of ballots are still being counted and in some of these races, it's getting so close, its about a 1% different or less, and if we want every legal work to be counted, they should, and americans deserve to have a free election. what evidence do you have that the selection is being stolen? we have a lot of different pieces of voter fraud in pennsylvania, michigan, wisconsin, georgia, herejust in nevada, we are finding out there are some dead voters that had voted in this election, so... even if that were the case, i haven't seen any evidence of that personally but evenif evidence of that personally but even if that was the case, joe biden's lead he was in the tens of thousands, you're not alleging that tens of thousands of dead people voted her? no i'm not alleging that, of course not, but they are finding cases where that is

happening, where signatures are not matching, where the trump campaign have had republican poll watchers that should be pa rt poll watchers that should be part of the process that are not part of the process with the ballot counting. you are here, pretty heavily armed right? just a little bit... what made you feel like you need to bring a weapon for today's process? is not the fa ct today's process? is not the fact that i have too, is the fa ct fact that i have too, is the fact that i have too, is the fact that i have too, is the fact that i can, and that people have died for this freedom, so that i could sit here, defend my country, my president, and i can bear arms as much as i want because that is our human right, that in our constitution, and i'm not a threat, actually i carry more medical than i do ammunition. i just here to represent my president, and to have a show of force out here with all my friends,... of force out here with all my friends, . .. the registrar of force out here with all my friends,... the registrar here said he felt concerned for the safety of ballot counters if people turn up with guns, that can be quite threatening to

people. do you accept that? the only thing that makes something threatening is an action. you can'tjust threatening is an action. you can't just stand around and threatening is an action. you can'tjust stand around and be a threat. if i had this gun pointed at you that is different, butjust pointed at you that is different, but just wait pointed at you that is different, butjust wait here, slime, has not even on it, no threat. these cops over here, they are armed to the teeth, they are armed to the teeth, they have automatic rifles and shotguns in the cruiser often loaded, why is that different for me to do it, different from you? it's not. why are you actually hear? do you think there was voter fraud? yes. i believe there was voter fraud, i believe we have way too much unanswered questions, and i will be honest with you, ifjoe biden is the true winner i will acce pt biden is the true winner i will accept it, that's what i have to do because i love this country and i will stand for this country to matt who was president, but i do believe that's what happened. let's talk about allegedly voter fraud now. joining me now from sunderland massachusetts is

lawrence douglas. he's a professor of law at amhurst college and an expert in national election law. thank you so much for being on the programme. my pleasure to be with you. what you make of these criminal proceedings, if they are launched, and there have been lodged in some areas, this litigation on the election, itself, what you make of it? well, i guess nothing has changed in the last few days, i guess i would describe it as baseless, really without any kind of merit. it's certainly possible that you could uncover cases of heartless mistakes being committed by overworked and tired election officials, but this notion that there is some kind of systemic fraud that has been perpetrated, that's com pletely been perpetrated, that's completely baseless. it's part of the problem now though, that people will believe that there

has been voter fraud, people will believe that there has been voterfraud, you heard that trump supported as saying they believe that there is voterfraud, we they believe that there is voter fraud, we presume they believe that there is voterfraud, we presume he has not been presented with any evidence either way, but he believes it nonetheless. yes, it's a very unfortunate state of affairs, and what makes it particularly disturbing is that the chief messaging is issuing from the president of the united states himself. he continues to make these baseless allegations and of course, he has a bully pulpit, and he has tens of millions of passionate and fervent supporters who believe the messaging that is coming from him, and even now you start to see some republican lawmakers distance themselves, however relu cta ntly a nd distance themselves, however reluctantly and happily from some of the statements that are coming from the white house, but again, there has been no backing down from the president

himself. talk us through some of the practicalities here. what are the timeframes we are operating odd to see whether anything comes of these lawsuits are not. again, i think it is fair to say that the various associated press and other media outlets that have declared joe biden the victor, they have gone through all the possible mouth, and evenifin all the possible mouth, and even if in the very unlikely case even if in the very unlikely case that one of these lawsuits which prevail — were to prevail, you would not have the material effect on the outcome of the election, so it is possible to maybe disallow a few votes and if you've birds there, but again, nothing is really going to turn on this, and if anything is going to happen, it might serve a political and for the president who seems to be refusing to concede, and so by bringing

this litigation, even if it's meritless, it does muddy the waters for his supporters, it continues to spread the suggestion that the election was not entirely upfront, and that i get just was not entirely upfront, and that i getjust permits the president to find further justification for refusing to concede. this can only go on for what? days? weeks? the constitutional process that exceeded he is out? that's right. 0n exceeded he is out? that's right. on december eight, december eight is the date when states have to basically finish deciding who carried their state, it will happen way before then, the states will com plete before then, the states will complete their final canvas of votes, and on december 1a, the date on which the electors for whatever winning candidate carried the respective state, that's when they convene in the state capitals to cast their

electoral college votes, and those electoral college votes are then sent by registered mail on to congress and in a joint session of congress on january six, 2021, that's when the certificates are open, counted any president is officially then elected. fascinating, thank you so much for talking us through that timeline. we will keep an eye on that in the weeks and months ahead. for the moment, thank you for coming on, we appreciate your time. 0ur correspondent, gary 0'donoghue was outside the white house earlier — he said joe biden will have much to do in terms of foreign relations. he we're expecting joe biden in the early days of his presidency to rejoin the paris climate change accord. he will possibly undo those executive orders surrounding things like

the muslim travel ban. so these will send very, very strong m essa 9 es will send very, very strong m essa g es to will send very, very strong messages to america's traditional allies stop he will, i'm sure, adopt a more consular tree tone on trade talks, the belligerence that has characterised trade talks not just with china has characterised trade talks notjust with china but has characterised trade talks not just with china but the european union as well, don't forget, has really started the relationship. we've already seen today, for example, the secretary general of nato welcoming joe biden's victory in the election. nato and the relationships with the nato countries, huge damage and distrust has been sown in that relationship over the last four yea rs relationship over the last four years so there are a whole lunch of different axes which people among america's allies will be breathing a sigh of relief, quite honestly, because they really didn't know how to deal with the united states. united states as a reality was

still the most powerful country in world