By Sadie Murphy

Today, January 6, 2021, around 12 p.m., Donald Trump addressed the public concerning the confirmation of President Elect Joe Biden.

            “All of us here today do not want to see our election victory stolen by a bold and radical left Democrats, which is what they’re doing, and stolen by the fake news media. That’s what they’ve done and what they’re doing. We will never give up. We will never concede. You don’t concede when there’s theft involved.” -President Donald Trump¹

Approximately 15 minutes after the rally had ended, supporters were seen making their way to the Capitol.

Within three hours, these protestors had breached the U.S. Senate Chamber, resulting in the evacuations of lawmakers. The photos of these lawmakers, suited up in gas masks to protect them from the tear gas that was deployed, can be found all over the web.

By 4 p.m., machine guns were visible on officers and pepper spray had become a real threat to protestors. At this point, President Trump had mobilized the D.C. National Guard to join Secret Service and National Guard services from other states.

President Elect Biden addressed the public and President Trump.

“Let me be very clear: The scenes of chaos at the Capitol do not reflect the true America. This is not who we are.  What we are seeing is a small number of extremists dedicated to lawlessness. This is not dissent. It is disorder. It is chaos. It borders on sedition. And it must end. Now. I call on this mob to pull back and allow the work of democracy to go forward. You’ve heard me say this in different contexts: the words of a President matter, no matter how good or bad that president is. At their best, the words of a president can inspire. At their worst, they can incite. Therefore, I call on President Trump to go on national television, now, to fulfill his oath and defend the Constitution and demand an end to this siege.” – President Elect Joe Biden²

Thirty minutes later, President Trump responded in a video on twitter (this video has since been removed from Twitter), confirming his (and his followers) beliefs that the election was rigged but advising them to return to their homes peacefully. Trump further referred to these individuals as “loved” and “very special.” Despite this, protestors were too stubborn to leave the scene.

Other politicians had different attitudes toward the protestors. Our own Senator Joe Manchin III, refe

rred to these individuals as “thugs” on his Facebook account.

Congress reconvened at approximately 8:30 tonight to continue the certification. Both Vice President Mike Pence and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell denounced the actions of the rioters.

The Phioenix  will follow up tomorrow with reactions from the college and local community.

1. Watch the full video @ Fact-checking Trump's Jan. 6 speech to 'stop the steal' protesters - The Washington Post
2.  Watch the full video @ WATCH: President-elect Joe Biden delivers remarks on situation in DC (wsls.com)
3. For a timeline of events, visit From inciting a mob to sending them home, a timeline of Trump’s day | National Post