WASHINGTON: The supporters of Donald Trump who attacked the Capitol were "provoked" by the president and "fed lies," Senate Republican Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday.
"The mob was fed lies," the powerful senator from Kentucky said in a speech on the Senate floor.
"They were provoked by the president and other powerful people.
"And they tried to use fear and violence to stop" the certification by Congress of Democrat Joe Biden's November 3 election victory, McConnell said.
Thousands of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol on January 6 following a speech by the president in which he repeated his false claims to have won the election.