Members of the House of Representatives and Senate hid in undisclosed locations while seeking shelter from a large swarm of Trump supporters that flooded into Capitol Hill and breached the Capitol building on January 6. 

The riot at the Capitol building began around 1 pm EST. The Pro-Trump mob stormed past officers who were guarding Congress and their chambers. The rioters were wearing Trump flags around their bodies, carrying Trump and Confederate flags, and refusing to stand down. 

The Trump supporters began the day with protests outside of the Capitol building following a speech from the President outside of the White House, but it quickly turned into a large riot with smashed windows and broken doors. The rioters swarmed the second floor of the Senate Chamber. There was an overwhelming number of people for which the Capitol security had not prepared, leaving the nation’s Capitol almost defenseless. 

The world came to a halt as everyone waited for President Donald Trump to tell his followers to “go home.” Hours after the initial breach of the Capitol building, President Trump released a short video on Twitter saying, “This was a fraudulent election … but now we need peace, we need law and order.” However, when that video was released, the Capitol was already on a mandatory shutdown due to the mob that entered the building and caused destruction, violence, and chaos. 

The rioters caused mayhem inside of the Capitol. The majority of the photos taken on the scene pictured white males, with the occasional white female. They stole podiums, raided offices, and broke and toppled furniture and decorations. There are photographs of a man sitting in Nancy Pelosi’s chair with his feet propped up on her desk and of people sitting in different offices.

President-elect Joe Biden said, “Our democracy is under unprecedented assault … an assault on the citadel of liberty, the Capitol itself and an assault on the people’s representatives.” He continued to speak out and explain that “the scenes of chaos at the Capitol do not reflect a true American,” nor does it “represent who we are.” When asking the mob to step away, he said “the words of a President matter, no matter how good or bad that President is.” Finally, Joe Biden called on President Trump to “go on national television … fulfill his oath and defend the Constitution,” and “demand an end to this siege.”

There were a total of 4 deaths at the Capitol yesterday. One female, who the authorities identified as Ashli Babbitt, an Air Force veteran, was climbing through a broken window when a US Capitol Police member shot her in the neck. The other three deaths, two males and one female, all adults, were caused by separate medical emergencies during the riot.

Despite the law enforcement and 6 pm EST curfew ordered by Washington D.C. mayor Muriel Bowser, there were still rioters standing around the Capitol several hours after curfew. Although President Trump denied requests to summon the National Guard, Vice President Mike Pence was the one who strongly encouraged it in the end. 

This evening, President Donald Trump posted a speech via Twitter after his account was restored where he said he is “outraged by the violence, lawlessness, and mayhem” from yesterday’s events. He made it very clear that the participants of the violence do not represent the United States. His message to the people who broke the law was that they “will pay.” President Trump claimed that his only goal in contesting the election results was “to ensure the integrity of the vote” and “defending the American democracy.” He ended his speech by saying serving as the President of the United States has been the honor of his lifetime and told his supporters “our incredible journey is only just beginning.” 

There are a large number of lawmakers in favor of removing President Donald Trump through impeachment. Additionally there has been an increasing amount of pressure to use the 25th Amendment to remove him from office. Two of President Trump’s cabinet members, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, have resigned over yesterday’s riots and the President’s response to them.