Congressman David Cicilline of Rhode Island said Trump’s behavior in connection with the January 6 assault not only harmed Congress, but also the democratic process and the number of people working within the Capitol complex.
He begins by noting that the three people in the presidential succession – then-Vice President Mike Pence, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and then-Senate Pro Tempore Chuck Grassley – were all in danger, and the rioters intended to kill Pence. to harm made clear and Pelosi.
“This mob tried to overthrow our government, and they came dangerously to reach the first three people in line with the presidency,” Cicilline said.
Rebels, he continued, were prepared to attack any lawmaker they encountered, as evidenced by comments posted by members of the mob on social media and then quoted in court reports.
Cicilline said Mr. Trump’s “true North Star is not the welfare of America, it’s not the first country like our dear colleague John McCain. No, his mission is Trump first, no matter the cost, no matter the threat to our democracy.”
The Rhode Island Democrat stressed that the trauma applies not only to lawmakers who are threatened, but also to the multitude of staff members, conservationists and food workers working in the Capitol.
“There are countless people still living with the trauma of the day,” he said.
Cicilline also highlighted the reports of journalists who were at the Capitol to discuss the composition of electoral votes, but found themselves at the center of the assault, reporters who have been hailed by Trump for years as the “enemy of the people.”
In addition to the emotional trauma inflicted, Cicilline noted the risk to public health as the attack occurred in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. He also honored the three U.S. Capitol police officers who lost their lives after the riots: Officers Brian Sicknick, Howard Liebengood and Jeffrey Smith. Sicknick died from injuries he sustained in the assault. Liebengood and Smith died in the days after the attack by suicide.
According to him, the injuries to law enforcers are huge, as officers suffered concussions, for example, broke irritated lungs and ribs. A total of 81 members of the Capitol police and 65 officers of the Metropolitan police were injured.
“Trump’s people have orally downplayed their patriotism, questioned their loyalty and yelled at racial insults,” Cicilline said of the emotional pain inflicted. “They called their traitors, Nazis, non-Americans because they protected us.”
The congressman asked senators to consider law enforcement officials, House and Senate staff members and Capitol employees who were scrambled by rioters who threw racist insults and were affected by the violence when they finally cast their votes to be convicted or acquitted. to become.
“Is this America? What is your answer to the question. Is that OK?” he said. “If not, what are we going to do about it? These people matter. These people risked their lives for us, so I respectfully ask you to consider them, the police officers, the staff of this building when you cast your vote.”
Cicilline noted the unprecedented nature of the attack – with the aim of derailing a constitutional mandate – and stressed that an assault on the peaceful transfer of power did not even take place during the Civil War.
But “it just happened because of the cold, calculated and conspiratorial actions of our former president, Donald J. Trump.”