UPDATE: 5 killed as Trump supporters storm U.S. Capitol
By ALAN SMASON, Special to the CCJN
Flamed by presidential tweets, an unruly mob of tens of thousands of protestors today stormed the United States Capitol and uprooted members of both houses of Congress as they fled for their safety. Four people died as a result of the violence. A fifth victim, Brian Sicknick, identified as a Capitol Police officer, died as a result of head injuries he suffered when he was beaten with a fire extinguisher..
The U.S. Capitol is stormed by a mob of Trump protestors on January 6, 2021.
One woman was shot by responding Capitol police after an armed standoff took place in the Senate chamber. Originally listed in critical condition from a gunshot wound to the chest, she later died at a nearby hospital. Three others died as a result of other injuries during the confrontation including one who suffered a cardiac episode, according to an NBC news report.
In addition to the Capitol police and Washington D.C. Metropolitan Police, national guardsmen from the nearby Commonwealth of Virginia and State of Maryland were called out by their respective governors to give assistance and members of the Federal Bureau of Investigation were dispatched on site. Capitol Hill was cleared of all demonstrators shortly after a 5 p.m. CST, when a sundown curfew went into effect imposed earlier by the mayor of Washington, D.C.
President Donald Trump, who had urged his supporters in earlier tweets to protest the official count of the Electoral College and at a early morning rally prompted supporters to take their protests to the Capitol, saying he would be with them. Presidential lawyer Rudy Giulani encouraged them to engage in “combat.” In an earlier tweet, the president had urged his supports on January 6 to “go wild.”
Even after protesters had broken windows, crashed through doors and illegally entered lawmakers’ offices at the Capitol, he continued to issue statements through his Twitter account for protestors to act “peaceful.”
President-elect Joe Biden, in responding to the unruly mobs, called it an attack on what he termed as “the citadel of democracy.”Said Biden: “It is chaos and it borders on sedition. And it must end now. I call on this mob to pull back now and let the democracy go forward.”
Biden then demanded President Trump to renounce the protests and stop them. “It’s not protests. It’s insurrection. The world is watching,” he said.
President-elect Joe Biden responds to the Capitol protests.
President Trump responded via a videotaped address from the Rose Garden of the White House and continued to advance the narrative that the election had been “stolen,” but again offered no evidence to support that assertion. He did then encourage his supporters to “go home” telling them additionally that he loved them.
Following that tweet, Twitter officials announced the suspension of President Trump’s account for 12 hours due to violation of their policies that led to the incitement of violence. Facebook and Instagram followed suit with 24-hour suspensions as well.
Members of both houses of Congress had met earlier in the day in the 59th joint session where they were expected to validate the count of the votes of the Electoral College in what would normally be considered a procedural vote without any consequence.
Prior to the protests, ten Republican U.S. senators and dozens of Republican U.S. representatives had registered their intent to protest the counting of the votes. Debate in both houses of Congress over the counting of the Electoral College votes had begun when the protesters began showing up in mass.
According to news reports, members of Congress have indicated their desire to proceed with the counting of the votes as soon as possible, including a scenario where they would assemble later tonight.
