WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 07th January, 2021) President Donald Trump's supporters violently stormed the US Capitol building as Congress was trying to certify Democrat Joe Biden's election victory, developments which drew international opprobrium, calls for impeachment, and the mobilization of National Guard units.
The congressional approval of the presidential election result is traditionally a mere ceremonial formality, but was turned into a political ordeal driven by Trump's refusal to concede after the mid-December Electoral College met to officially bless Biden's win. Trump has repeatedly claimed that the election was stolen due to a vast fraud conspiracy - allegations that have been refuted by election security agencies and the Justice Department.
The developments marked the most significant breach of the US Capitol since 1814 - when British troops set fire to the grounds during the war of 1812, business Insider's John Haltiwanger wrote in a report after the events.
The day began with hundreds of thousands of Trump supporters gathered to listen to the president deliver a speech near the White House at the "Save America," rally. Meanwhile, Congress was set to begin a joint session to count electoral votes presided over by Vice President Mike Pence.
"We will never give up, we will never concede," Trump said during a speech in which he mentioned the word "fight" over 20 times. "We fight like Hell and if you don't fight like Hell, you're not going to have a country anymore."
Trump also called on Pence to send electoral votes back to the states to re-certify hoping that the results could be overturned to prevent Biden from taking office on January 20.
During his speech the crowd could be heard chanting "Fight for Trump! Fight for Trump!"
The breach of the US Capitol building was condemned by both political parties and reportedly even raised the prospect of having Trump removed. CNN reported, citing a source familiar with the matter, that some cabinet members and other Republican leaders discussed invoking the 25th amendment to remove Trump from office.
A Sputnik correspondent reporting from the ground witnessed developments from the speech to the break in of the Capitol building and had a chance to ask Trump's supporters what they were thinking.
"They stole the election. We pay tax Dollars, this is our house," David from Dallas, Texas said. "We're fighting because this is God's country, that's why we're out here. And they're tearing our country to hell in a handbasket."
David along with other supporters refused to even obey Trump's request to go home, after the president put out a video at an apparent move at damage control. But the video, which also seemed to justify the protests, was taken off social media. Twitter and Facebook also temporarily suspended Trump's account. Twitter went so far as to threaten to permanently suspend the account if Trump violated the social media firm's policy against inciting violence again.
Ahead of the early afternoon session, Pence in a letter to Congress said he did not have the unilateral authority to decide which Electoral College votes should be counted, despite Trump's repeated calls on him to reject the results of states.
At least 14 senators and over 100 House lawmakers intended to raise objections during the joint session to Biden votes, although the final tally was widely expected to fall in the former vice president's favor. Early on, lawmakers objected to the state of Arizona's electoral college votes that were awarded to Biden. Shortly after, the siege of congress commenced.
Trump supporters clashed with police outside the Capitol building initially before they pushed their way through and began smashing windows and entering the premises. Police used tear gas and rubber bullets but was not successful in preventing the breach. The rioters would soon seize the rotunda room of the US Capitol building as well as the inauguration stage, a Sputnik correspondent reported.
Lawmakers began tweeting that they were "taking shelter" as rioters entered the building while security began evacuating others including Pence. Congress was put on lockdown and the mayor of Washington, DC imposed a curfew amid the outbreak of violence. Some congressional leaders were evacuated to a nearby military base.
Police said that one woman was shot and killed, at least thirteen arrests were made and five weapons seized. Authorities also said at least two explosives were found and detonated on or near the capitol grounds.
Washington, DC and the state of Virginia mobilized the National Guard in order to quell the unrest. The White House mistakenly said that Trump had mobilized the DC guard when in fact reports surfaced that Pence did it.
Shortly after 5:30 p.m. EST (9:30 p.m. GMT), US officials finally said the US Capitol building was secured. However, some Democratic leaders were not taking any chances.
"At the request of the United States National Guard officials, I am deploying 1,000 members of the New York National Guard to Washington, DC for up to two weeks to aid and facilitate the peaceful transition of presidential power," Governor Andrew Cuomo said in a statement on Wednesday.
CALLS FOR IMPEACHMENT, CONDEMNATIONS
Even many of Trump's Republican allies - like Senators Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio - expressed outrage over the violence. US Congressmen Adam Kinzinger went so far as to describe the developments as an attempted "coup." Democratic Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley urged her colleagues to begin the impeachment process at once.
"Donald J. Trump should immediately be impeached by the House of Representatives and removed from office by the United States Senate as soon as Congress reconvenes," Pressley said via Twitter on Wednesday evening.
Biden while speaking to reporters called on the protesters to end the siege and stop the assault on the rule of law and democracy.
"To storm the Capitol ... threatening the safety of duly elected officials, it's not a protest, it's insurrection," Biden said.
Leaders from around the globe condemned the violence including those from Canada, the UK and the EU in addition to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
"The Secretary-General is saddened by the events at the US Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday," UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said in a statement. "In such circumstances, it is important that political leaders impress on their followers the need to refrain from violence, as well as to respect democratic processes and the rule of law."
Around 8:00 p.m. EST Congress reconvened with several congressional leaders as well as Pence saying that they cannot allow violent mobs to stop their work. Trump's bid to reverse the results also backfired when one senator after the session reconvened reversed her objection.
"When I arrived in Washington this morning I fully intended to object the certification of the Electoral votes, however, the events that have transpired today have forced me to reconsider and I cannot now in good conscious object to the certification of these electors," Republican Senator Kelly Loeffler said on the senate floor during the evening session.
However, Senator Josh Hawley refused to reverse his objection along with a few other lawmakers.
The Senate went on to approve the electoral votes and the House is expected to finalize the process around midnight.
