Elected officials at the state and national levels are denouncing election protests that turned violent in the nation’s capital on Wednesday.
Supporters of President Donald Trump breached the US Capitol as Congress was holding a joint session to finalize the electoral vote count. The entire District of Columbia National Guard was activated to respond. At least one woman was shot and later died. The circumstances behind that shooting are unclear. It took almost four hours for the Capitol to be declared secure afterward.
The vote count stopped and is currently on hold. Several lawmakers say they plan to finish the count Wednesday night.
US Senator Jerry Moran, a Republican, called the turn of events “completely unacceptable and unpatriotic,” adding, “It’s a sad day for our nation and it is an unwelcome reminder that our democracy is fragile.” Fellow Republican and recently-sworn-in Senator Roger Marshall said he shared the frustration of many voters about the election results, but the incident was “unreasonable and unacceptable and I condemn it at the highest level.” Recently-sworn-in Second District Congressman Jake LaTurner a fellow Republican, called the incident “reprehensible” and a betrayal of the First Amendment right to peacefully assemble. Representative Tracey Mann, another Republican who was also recently sworn in, has not commented.
Neither Marshall, Moran or LaTurner laid blame for the protests and the violence that followed, but other Republicans did. Without naming Trump, Nebraska Senator Ben Sasse said Wednesday’s violence “was the inevitable and ugly outcome of the president’s addiction to constantly stoking division.” Chris Christie, a one-time Trump adviser, said, “The President caused this protest to occur. He’s the only one who can make it stop.”
At the state level, Attorney General Derek Schmidt said the “lawlessness at the US Capitol today is sickening, shameful, inexcusable and counterproductive.”
Trump is still not conceding the election results, which as affirmed by the Electoral College last month have Democrat Joe Biden winning both the popular vote and electoral vote. Several hours after the protests started, Trump told supporters to go home “in peace,” repeating claims the election was stolen and he won in a landslide.
The events in Washington overshadowed what happened in Georgia, where Democrats claimed both US Senate seats to finish runoff elections. That is significant because it means there are 50 Democrats and Republicans in the Senate — and with Biden affirmed by the Electoral College as President-elect, tiebreaking votes will be decided by Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.
KVOE’s national media partner ABC News will have continuous updates as the situation unfolds.
