Trump protestors siege Capitol Hill, four die in skirmish
BBC News
London, January 8, 2021
The US Congress has certified Joe Biden’s victory in the Presidential election, hours after supporters of Donald Trump stormed the building in an attack that saw four people die.
Lawmakers resumed the session after Police removed a mob that had been encouraged by President Trump as part of his attempt to overturn his defeat.
The Certification clears the way for Mr Biden to be sworn in on January 20, 2021.
In response, Mr Trump finally pledged an “orderly transition” of power.
Unprecedented chaos
Wednesday’s (January 6m, 2020) chaotic scenes followed months of escalating rhetoric from Mr Trump and some Republican allies that sought to undermine the result of the November 3 Election. The invasion of the Capitol by the President’s supporters – some armed – was an event without precedent in modern American history.
Washington DC Mayor Muriel Bowser said that one of the four who died – a woman named as Ashli Babbitt – was part of a group that forced entry into the Chamber of the House of Representatives while it was still in session. They were confronted by plainclothes officers, and an officer pulled out a weapon and fired it.
The US Capitol Police said the employee involved had been put on administrative leave pending an investigation.
Local media said Ashli Babbitt was a San Diego-area US Air Force veteran and Trump supporter. She was proclaimed dead at hospital.
Death and injury
One woman and two men died as a result of “medical emergencies,” officials said, without giving details. At least 14 members of the police were injured.
The FBI is now seeking to identify those involved in the rampage, which came after Mr Trump had told a rally he would never concede the election and urged his supporters to march on the Capitol.
It also came on the day two Democrats won Senate seats in elections in Georgia, giving the party effective control of the whole of Congress. This major political victory will ease the passage of Mr Biden’s agenda after he is inaugurated.
Events in Congress
Democrat Joe Biden’s victory was confirmed at about 03:30 local time (08:30 GMT) on Thursday in a joint session presided over by Republican Vice-President Mike Pence, who called the violence a “dark day in the history of the United States Capitol.”
Mr Biden blasted the “insurrection” as Mr Trump, while telling the mob to “go home,” continued to make false claims of electoral fraud. The outgoing President’s Twitter and Facebook accounts were later frozen and remain blocked.
Objections by some Republican lawmakers to overturn the result in Arizona and Pennsylvania were rejected. Congress formally certified the final electoral college vote, with Mr Biden receiving 306 votes to Mr Trump’s 232.
Trump’s pressure tactics
For days Mr Trump had been piling pressure on his Vice-President to block certification. But in a letter to Congress on Wednesday, Mr Pence said he had no “unilateral authority to decide which electoral votes should be counted.”
In declaring the final vote totals, Mr Pence said this “shall be deemed a sufficient declaration of the persons elected President and Vice-President of the United States.”
Shortly afterwards, Mr Trump said in a statement: “Even though I totally disagree with the outcome of the election, and the facts bear me out, nevertheless there will be an orderly transition on January 20th.”
On Thursday (January 7, 2020), the White House Press Office issued a statement saying that it “grieves the loss of life” and will continue “to pray for a speedy recovery for those who suffered injury.”
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