After a proud moment for the Democrats and the country yesterday as the party took back the United States Senate for the first time in six years, yesterday, Wednesday, January 6, 2021, marks a sad and disgraceful day in the history of the United States. A violent mob, encouraged by the words of President Trump, rioted in the nation’s capital city, eventually breaking into the U.S. Capitol and causing the building to be evacuated, just as Congress began certifying electoral votes for President-Elect Joe Biden.
Shortly after 1 p.m. Eastern Time (all times given going forward will be in Eastern Time), just after Congress began certifying the electoral votes for the 2020 presidential election of which Joe Biden won, a mob of at least hundreds of pro-Donald Trump protesters pushed their way into the Capitol Building, surging past lines of defenses of the Capitol Police and breaking their way into the building. The doors to the House and Senate floors had to be locked and both chambers had to be evacuated. Senators and Congressmen had to be brought to safe rooms in undisclosed locations, with some posting on Twitter after the event that they feared for their lives.
Rioters could be seen pushing against metallic barriers and police lines and smoke grenades and tear gas were used. After rioters broke into the Capitol Building, congresspeople were told to take shelter and don gas masks. A number of congressional leaders were taken to an army base nearby.
Windows on the west side of the Senate were broken by rioters, and it took until 3:30 p.m. for the Senate floor to be cleared of rioters, and until 5:40 p.m. for the entire building to be deemed secure again.
The entire 1,100-men strong D.C. National Guard was mobilized to put down the insurrection, and multiple units from the Virginia and Maryland National Guard were also called in. The mobilization was approved by Vice President Mike Pence, not the president, even though he is the commander-in-chief. It also prompted Washington, D.C Mayor Muriel Bowser to announce a curfew from 6 p.m. through to 6 a.m., and a state of emergency was called and was later extended until Jan. 20, when President-Elect Biden will be inaugurated.
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) condemned the president for the attack on the Capitol and described the event as an “insurrection incited by the President of the United States.”
Yesterday was the first time since the 1814 that the Capitol Building had been overrun by an insurrection. The last time this happened in 1814, British forces attacked and burned the building during the War of 1812. This time, the insurrection was not caused by a foreign army, but by an American militia, incited by President Donald Trump, who’s tweets calling for violence has now been removed and his Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram accounts suspended.
In a video hours after the riot began, Trump asked supporters to “go home,” but went on to say that the rioters were “very special” and sympathized with them, repeating his claims of baseless election fraud, which have now been debunked thoroughly.
In a now-deleted tweet, Trump said, “These are the things and events that happen when a sacred landslide election victory is so unceremoniously & viciously stripped away from great patriots who have been badly & unfairly treated for so long. Go home with love & in peace. Remember this day forever!”
Multiple Democrats and business leaders, including the National Association of Manufacturers, a group that had previously aligned itself with Trump, called for Trump to be impeached again or be removed using the Twenty-fifth Amendment for sedition, insurrection, and conspiracy to overthrow the U.S. government.
A bomb was also found, and safely detonated, at the Republican National Committee’s headquarters. The Democratic National Committee was evacuated shortly after.
Congressional lawmakers returned to the Capitol at around 8 p.m., when Congress resumed to confirm President-Elect Joe Biden’s Electoral College victory. At the time, both chambers of Congress were debating over whether or not Arizona’s electoral votes should be certified. The objection was dismissed after both houses of Congress voted not to sustain the objection.
Both Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Republican Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) were determined to confirm Joe Biden as the President-Elect. McConnell said that “the United States Senate will not be intimidated. We will not be kept out of this chamber by thugs, mobs, or threats,” and “we will certify the winner of the 2020 presidential election.”
Though some senators chose to not object to any more electoral vote certification, avoiding a debate over the electoral votes of Georgia, Nevada, and Michigan, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) objected to the certification of Pennsylvania’s electoral votes, causing the joint session of Congress to disperse around midnight for a two-hour debate session. The session of Congress continued well into the early hours of the morning until Congress finally affirmed Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as President- and Vice President-Elect at 3:40 a.m.
Today was a very dark day for American democracy. Though Trump had tried to dismantle America’s democratic institutions, democracy will prevail, and he will be out of office no later than noon on January 20.
Newshacker Blog strongly condemns yesterday’s attacks on America’s democratic institutions and the attempt to stage a coup to overturn the results of a fair election.
See the 2020 election coverage page for more.
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