WASHINGTON , -- On Wednesday, a mob loyal President Donald Trump stormed Washington's Capitol and forced lawmakers to flee. This was in a shocking attempt to reverse America's presidential election and undermine democracy in America.
While the nation's elected representatives tried to hide under desks and wear dongas masks , police failed to blockade the building. This was one of the most shocking scenes to ever unfold at a place of American political power. Washington's mayor established an evening curfew to stop the violence.
Trump encouraged the rioters and had spent weeks falsely attacking election integrity and had asked his supporters to march on Washington to protest Congress' official approval of Biden’s win. The mob stopped proceedings abruptly while some Republican lawmakers were attempting to raise objections on Trump's behalf.
The combined protests and GOP election objections were an almost impossible challenge to American democracy. They exposed the deep divisions that have roiled the country over Trump's four-year tenure. Although the attempts to stop Biden's swearing-in on Jan. 20 were certain to fail, Trump's efforts to reverse the election results result have severely strained the nation’s democratic safeguards.
Congress reassembled in the evening. Lawmakers decried the destruction of the Capitol and promised to complete confirming the Electoral College vote that Biden won.
Thursday dawned before the lawmakers finished their work and confirmed that Biden had won the presidency election.
Vice President Mike Pence presided over the joint session and announced the total, 306-232.
Trump, who refused to concede the election, stated in a statement shortly after the vote that there would be "an orderly transition" of power at the inauguration day.
Trump stated that he disagreed with the outcome of the election and that the facts support his assertion, but that there would be a smooth transition on January 20th. This statement was posted by an aide to Twitter.
After the day of agony, Pence had reopened Senate and addressed demonstrators directly: "You didn't win."
Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell stated that the "failed rebellion" highlighted lawmakers' obligation to complete the count. Nancy Pelosi, Democratic House Speaker, said that Congress would demonstrate to the world "what America's made of" by the result.
He gave his supporters an impetus to get involved Wednesday morning by holding a rally at the White House where he encouraged them to march to Washington. He spent most of the afternoon sitting in his private dining area, just off the Oval Office, watching the television coverage of the violence. He reluctantly sent a couple of tweets and a videotape to his supporters, telling them it was time for them to "go home peacefully" -- but he maintained his support for their cause.
Twitter locked Trump's account for the first-ever time hours later. They demanded that he delete tweets exonerating violence and threatened him with "permanent suspension".
Two weeks before his inauguration, a somber President elect Biden said that American democracy was "under unprecedented attack,", a sentiment shared by many in Congress, some Republicans included. Former President George W. Bush stated that he was shocked and dismayed at the events.
For centuries, the Capitol building has been the site of protests and violence. The Wednesday events were especially remarkable because they took place at least initially with the implicit blessings of the president, and because the underlying goal was to overturn the results of a free presidential election.
When lawmakers gathered Wednesday afternoon to count the Electoral College results (in which Trump was defeated 306-232), tensions were already high. McConnell tried to persuade more than 150 GOP lawmakers to support objections to certain results. However, there was no evidence of fraud or wrongdoing during the election.
Trump spent the days leading up to the proceedings publicly criticizing Pence, who was primarily ceremonial, in order to help the effort to throw out Pence's results. He tweeted, "Do it Mike! This is a time to show extreme courage!"
In a statement made shortly before Pence presided, Pence defied Trump and said he couldn't claim "unilateral authority", to reject the electoral votes which make Biden president.
Many Republicans, including Sen. Kelly Loeffler (Republican from Georgia), who lost Tuesday's bid for reelection.
Protesters earlier had broken through the building shouting and waving Trump flags and battling police. After tear gas was used in Capitol Rotunda, lawmakers were instructed to cover themselves and get gas masks. Some House lawmakers took to Twitter to say they were hiding in their offices.
Scott Peters (D-Calif.), told reporters that he was present in the House chamber at the time when rioters stormed it. "Security officers made us all fall, you could see they were trying to stop some kind of attack."
He claimed that they had a piece furniture against the door. Peters stated, "And they had guns pulled." The glass panes that lead to the House doors were broken.
Police said that the woman who was shot and killed was part of a group that was attempting to open the doors to a room with barricaded doors. On the other side were armed officers. Capitol Police shot her in the chest and she was taken to hospital, where she was declared dead. Three other people were also killed by medical emergencies in the long protest around Capitol grounds, according to city police.
As the evacuation was taking place, staff members grabbed boxes containing Electoral College votes. The ballots would have been destroyed if protesters hadn't intervened, according to Senator Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.).
The mob storming Congress provoked outrage from Democrats and Republicans alike. Lawmakers accused Trump of inciting violence through his constant falsehoods about election fraud.
"Count me out," Trump ally Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said. "Enough is enough."
Many suggested that Trump should be charged with a crime, or even expelled under the Constitution's Amendment 25th Amendment. This seemed unlikely just two weeks before his term ends.
Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.) stated that Donald Trump should probably be charged with treason. "This is how a coup can be started. This is how democracy dies."
Senator Ben Sasse, R. Neb., who has at times clashed Trump, released a statement saying that "Lies have consequences." This violence was an inevitable and terrible outcome of Trump's insatiable desire to incite division.
Trump's claims of voter fraud are not true. However, his former attorney general and election officials have stated that there were no issues on a scale that could change the outcome. Both Republican and Democratic officials have both certified the results of all states as fair and exact.
Both the Senate and House of Representatives voted no to an objection to Arizona election results. It was raised by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.), and another from Pennsylvania by Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa). The objections were supported by most House Republicans. Other objections to the results from Wisconsin, Michigan, Nevada, and Georgia were also rejected.
According to the Pentagon, approximately 1,100 members of the District of Columbia National Guard were being mobilized in support of law enforcement at Capitol. Over a dozen were arrested.
As darkness fell, law enforcers moved towards the protesters using percussion grenades. It was obvious that large amounts of tear gas clouds were visible. The police were dressed in full riot gear and marched down the steps clashing with protestors.
