- Joint session certifies Biden win; Hold Trump accountable, demands media ; World leaders horrified
WASHINGTON (TIP): In an unprecedented assault on democracy in the US, thousands of President Donald Trump’s supporters, on January 6, stormed the Capitol complex and clashed with the police, resulting in five deaths and interrupting a constitutional process by the Congress to affirm the victory of President-elect Joe Biden and Vice-President-elect Kamala Harris.
Trump-fueled insurrection
Alleging poll fraud, Trump, in a December 20 tweet, had called his supporters for a “wild” rally on the day President-elect Biden’s victory was to be certified.
At January 6 rally, he exhorted his supporters to “never give up” and march towards the Capitol.
Armed protesters stormed the building, forcing Biden’s certification process to halt.
Vice-President Mike Pence and Congress members were evacuated and the building was sealed.
The mayhem left 5 persons, including a woman and a police officer dead.
President Trump’s top White House adviser on Russia Ryan Tully quit over the storming of Capitol Hill. So have three others.
Trump’s Secretary of Transportation, and Secretary of Education too have quit. So have quite a few others. There seems to be a race among White House and Trump officials to jump the sinking ship.
15-day Public emergency
Washington DC Mayor Muriel Bowser announced the extension of public emergency in the American capital for 15 days.
The world was shocked to learn about the assault on the temple of democracy . Trump’s role appalled many leaders.
World leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, have expressed shock and concern over the rioting and violence in Washington DC
China likens the mob assault to that of Hong Kong protesters’ attack on the legislative building in 2019.
It is important that political leaders impress on their followers the need to refrain from violence and respect democratic processes. UN Chief.
Distressed. The democratic process cannot be allowed to be subverted through unlawful protests. Narendra Modi, Prime Minister
The Electoral College votes of Biden and Harris were finally approved Thursday, January 7 morning after the Senate and the House of Representatives rejected all objections raised by the Republicans to the votes in Pennsylvania and Arizona.In the presidential election held on November 3, Biden and Harris received 306 electoral votes, while President Trump and Vice-President Mike Pence got 232.
The 78-year-old Democratic leader and his 56-year-old Indian-origin deputy will be inaugurated on January 20, it was announced after the constitutional process was finally completed at a joint session of the Congress.
In the violence on Wednesday, five persons were killed, including one woman who was shot by a police officer and a police officer named Brian Sicknick, 42, who was reportedly struck in head, amid protests and rioting, the police said.
Trump later acknowledged his election loss. He said although he disagreed with the outcome, “there will be an orderly transition on January 20”. The Congress joint session, which is normally a ceremonial step, was halted for several hours when Trump supporters breached the Capitol. Proceedings resumed and continued through the night after the building was got cleared.
President-elect Joe Biden said, “The scenes of chaos at the Capitol do not reflect a true America. What we’re seeing are a small number of extremists dedicated to lawlessness. This is not dissent. It’s disorder. It’s chaos. It borders on sedition. And it must end now.” House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi said, “Today, a shameful assault was made on our democracy.” All four living former US Presidents — Barack Obama, George W Bush, Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter—also condemned the incident.
Several US media outlets asserted that Donald Trump, whose “seditious rhetoric” incited a violent attack on the Capitol, is a “menace” and unfit to remain in the office and must be removed.
Twitter and Facebook suspended Trump’s accounts after he continued to push conspiracy theories about the election. Twitter suspended Trump’s account for 12 hours and also blocked three of his tweets, including a video of his address to his supporters. Facebook and Instagram announced to block the accounts of the President for the rest of his term (till January 20). The FBI has sought the people’s help in identifying the rioters who stormed the US Capitol, as the Justice Department said on Thursday a policy adopted in the summer to consider sedition charges for anti-racism protesters would also apply in this case.
( Agencies)