Police keep a watch on demonstrators who tried to break through a police barrier, Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021, at the Capitol in Washington. As Congress prepares to affirm President-elect Joe Biden's victory, thousands of people have gathered to show their support for President Donald Trump and his claims of election fraud. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)The US Capitol had to be locked down Wednesday with lawmakers inside as violent clashes broke out between supporters of President Donald Trump and the police. The US House of Representatives and Senate had met in a rare joint session to begin considering the certification of Electoral College results, that show Democrat Joe Biden defeated Trump.
Trump, who continues to insist he will not concede, had said at a rally of his supports on Wednesday afternoon in Washington, “We will never give up.”
Hours later, protesters tore down metal barricades at the bottom of the Capitol’s steps and were met by officers in riot gear. Some tried to push past the officers, who held shields, and the police could be seen firing pepper spray into the crowd to keep them back, even as the crowd shouted, “traitors”. The violence soon moved inside the Capitol building, with reports of firing at the premises. The violence also included the fatal shooting of a woman, according to the District of Columbia police.
As the clashes broke out, Trump appealed for peace. “Please support our Capitol Police and Law Enforcement. They are truly on the side of our Country. Stay peaceful!” he tweeted. Biden, on the other hand, said the democracy in America was under an “unprecedented assault”.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Thursday took to Twitter to express his sadness over the violence in the United States. “Distressed to see news about rioting and violence in Washington DC. Orderly and peaceful transfer of power must continue. The democratic process cannot be allowed to be subverted through unlawful protests,” he tweeted.
Smoke fills the walkway outside the Senate Chamber as supporters of President Donald Trump are confronted by U.S. Capitol Police officers inside the Capitol, Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Vice President Mike Pence reconvened lawmakers to count Electoral College votes hours after a mob of Trump supporters disrupted the previous session. “Violence never wins,” Pence said. “Freedom wins, and this is still the people's house.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi Thursday took to Twitter to express his sadness over the violence in the United States. "Distressed to see news about rioting and violence in Washington DC. Orderly and peaceful transfer of power must continue. The democratic process cannot be allowed to be subverted through unlawful protests," he tweeted.
The violence at the US Capitol on Wednesday included the fatal shooting of a woman, according to the District of Columbia police. A police spokesman, Alaina Gertz, provided no further details, including who shot the victim or if anyone had been arrested in the episode.
After the Capitol on Wednesday afternoon was overrun by supporters of President Donald Trump, police were seen providing aid to a bloodied woman lying on the floor inside the building. It not immediately clear if that was the woman who was shot.
Twitter on Wednesday locked the account of President Donald Trump, which prevents him from posting messages to his more than 88 million followers, after a day of violencein the nation’s capital and a string of inaccurate and inflammatory posts from the president.
The move was an unprecedented rebuke of Trump by Twitter, which has long been a preferred megaphone for the president. Twitter said Trump’s account would remain locked for 12 hours and the ban could be extended if Trump did not agree to delete several tweets that rejected the election results and appeared to incite violence. The company also said it would permanently suspend Trump’s account if he continued to violate its policies against violent threats and election misinformation.
Nancy Pelosi said Biden won certification to resume tonight once US Capitol is secure, AFP reported.
A woman who was shot inside the US Capitol during the violent pro-Trump protest has died. That's according to two officials familiar with the matter who spoke to The Associated Press on Wednesday on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak publicly.
The Metropolitan Police Department said it was taking the lead on the shooting investigation. Police did not immediately provide details about the circumstances of the shooting. (AP)
In a nationally televised address, Biden said that the scenes of chaos at the Capitol do not reflect the true America. "This is not who we are. What we are seeing is a small number of extremists dedicated to lawlessness. This is not dissent. It is disorder. It is chaos. It borders on sedition. And it must end. Now, he said." Biden added, "Our way is plain: It is the way of democracy — of lawfulness, and of respect — respect for each other, and for our nation."
Leaders around the world condemned the storming of the U.S. Capitol by supporters of President Donald Trump on Wednesday, expressing shock at the chaos unfolding in a country they once relied upon for global leadership.
“Disgraceful scenes in US Congress," tweeted Prime Minister Boris Johnson of Britain, a staunch ally of the United States over generations. “The United States stands for democracy around the world and it is now vital that there should be a peaceful and orderly transfer of power.”
Other allies were similarly appalled at what they described as an attack on American democracy, though some said they believed U.S. democratic institutions would withstand the turmoil. A number of leaders singled out Trump for harsh criticism.
“Trump and his supporters should finally accept the decision of the American voters and stop trampling on democracy,” German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas wrote on Twitter. "From inflammatory words come violent deeds.” He added that “contempt for democratic institutions has disastrous effects.”
“The beauty of democracy?” with a shrug emoji was the reaction tweeted by Bashir Ahmad, a personal assistant to the president of Nigeria, which has seen several coups since independence — including one led decades ago by President Muhammadu Buhari, who most recently entered the office via a vote. (AP)
Former President George W. Bush has released a statement condemning the storming of the US Capitol building, describing it as 'sickening' and 'heartbreaking.'
Republican Sen. Mitt Romney is blaming President Donald Trump for inciting a violent “insurrection” at the Capitol.
Romney, the GOP’s 2012 presidential nominee and a frequent critic of Trump's, said the violent breach of the Capitol on Wednesday was “due to a selfish man’s injured pride and the outrage of his supporters whom he has deliberately misinformed for the past two months.″
The Utah senator said those who continue to support Trump’s “dangerous gambit” by objecting to the results of a legitimate, democratic election “will forever be seen as complicit in an unprecedented attack against our democracy.
Republican Sen. Ben Sasse is directly blaming President Donald Trump for the storming of the Capitol by huge, angry crowds of pro-Trump protesters.
The Nebraska lawmaker and frequent critic of Trump said Wednesday evening that the Capitol “was ransacked while the leader of the free world cowered behind his keyboard — tweeting against his Vice President for fulfilling the duties of his oath to the Constitution.”
Sasse says in a written statement, “Lies have consequences. This violence was the inevitable and ugly outcome of the President’s addiction to constantly stoking division.
The police chief of Washington, DC, says pro-Trump protesters deployed chemical irritants on police in order to break into the US Capitol. Police Chief Robert Contee says officials have declared the scene a riot. One civilian was shot inside the Capitol on Wednesday. Thirteen arrests were made of people from out of the area.
Mayor Muriel Bowser says the behaviour of the Trump supporters was shameful, unpatriotic and above all is unlawful.
She says,"There will be law and order and this behaviour will not be tolerated." Metropolitan police have been sent to the Capitol, and authorities were coming in from Maryland, Virginia and New Jersey to help out. The National Guard was also deployed, as were Homeland Security investigators and Secret Service. (AP)
Vice President-elect Kamala Harris took to Twitter following President-elect Biden’s remarks Wednesday afternoon to call for an end to the violence at the Capitol.
Boris Johnson decried the 'disgraceful scenes' in US Capitol and called for "a peaceful and orderly transfer of power". The United Kingdom Prime Minister was one of the first global leaders to react to the events in Washington.
The US Congress could certify just 12 Electoral College votes on Wednesday before pro-Trump rioters stormed the US Capitol, interrupting a joint session of Congress where lawmakers were set to certify President-elect Joe Biden's win.
The process of certifying the electoral votes works alphabetically, with lawmakers starting with Alabama and then working through the states in alphabetical order. Congress had certified just two states Alabama's nine Electoral College votes and Alaska's three before the riots broke out. All 12 of those votes went to incumbent President Donald Trump.
There are 538 electoral votes in total, one for each congressperson and senator plus three for Washington, DC. (PTI)
Democrat Senator Jeff Merkley has confirmed that Senate floor staffers saved the electoral college ballots as the chamber was evacuated.
President-elect Joe Biden called on President Trump "to go on national television now to fulfill his oath and defend the Constitution by demanding an end to this siege." Biden tweeted: "Our way is plain: It is the way of democracy — of lawfulness, and of respect — respect for each other, and for our nation."
The head of a major US business group urged senior US officials to consider removing President Donald Trump from office after supporters of the outgoing president stormed the US Capitol. National Association of Manufacturers President and CEO Jay Timmons said Trump "incited violence in an attempt to retain power, and any elected leader defending him is violating their oath to the Constitution and rejecting democracy in favor of anarchy.... Vice President Pence, who was evacuated from the Capitol, should seriously consider working with the Cabinet to invoke the 25th Amendment to preserve democracy." Reuters
Congresswoman Ilhan Omar has said Donald Trump must be impeached, "it’s a matter of preserving our Republic and we need to fulfill our oath."
As the US Congress was forced to halt proceedings owing to the violence at the Capitol, the DC mayor ordered a 6 pm curfew Democratic congressional leaders Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer in a joint statement called on President Trump to "demand" all protesters leave US Capitol grounds "immediately", reported AP.