NEW: A day unlike any other in DC began w/ Congress gathering in a joint session in what in other times would've been an uneventful ceremony symbolizing the peaceful transfer of power - certifying states' presidential electoral votes. @Politicsinsider ($) ow.ly/FMih50D1XyC
It soon devolved into one of the most chaotic in modern US history — nothing less than an insurrection by supporters of President Donald Trump. An angry mob was growing violent outside the Capitol and pushing its way inside.
The typically humdrum counting of the Electoral College votes presided over by the VP quickly turned into a bloody mess; security officials interrupted the goings-on at the Senate floor & rushed Pence out to safety, followed by lawmakers, reporters, and congressional staffers.
Pennsylvania Democratic Rep. Madeleine Dean was in the House gallery when rioters entered the building.
"She was very shaken," said her communications director Timothy Mack. "She was in tears."
"She was very shaken," said her communications director Timothy Mack. "She was in tears."
In one heartbreaking photo, Rep. Jason Crow, a CO Democrat is seen comforting Rep. Susan Wild of PA as lawmakers took cover before being evacuated to an undisclosed location.
Other lawmakers said they'd "never seen" anything like what unfolded at the Capitol on Wednesday.
Other lawmakers said they'd "never seen" anything like what unfolded at the Capitol on Wednesday.
Protests and demonstrations of all sorts take place around the Capitol. Occasionally, there are security threats. But never have thousands of Americans laid siege. Not since the War of 1812, when British troops set the Capitol ablaze, has any such attack on the Capitol occurred.
Rep. Fred Upton, a Michigan Republican, hunkered down in his office in the Rayburn building while the violent mob invaded the Capitol building nearby. "I've never seen anything like this," he told Insider Wednesday evening in an interview. "This is just scary."
He slammed Trump too. "He inspired the crowd. It's exactly what he did," Upton said. "This will be his legacy now. A very, very sore loser. Not willing to follow the practice of a peaceful transition of power that has set America above the rest of the world."
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