JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Republican and Democratic Missouri leaders have spoken out against rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday in a chaotic and violent protest against President Donald Trump’s election loss.
Trump supporters occupied the Capitol and halted a joint session of Congress where lawmakers began counting election votes.
GOP governor Mike Parson, who said he was a ‘law-and-order guy’, denied rioting by violating the law. U.S. Senator Josh Hawley, a Republican in Missouri, called for an end to the violence and said lawmakers should be held accountable.
State legislators also spoke out against the mob.
The Missouri State House held a moment of silence, and Republican House leaders described the violence as unacceptable.
John Rizzo, senator in Kansas City, the leading Senate Democrat in Missouri, canceled a press conference and called the occupation “an act of modern betrayal.” House Democratic Minority Leader Crystal Quade said it was an “insult to democracy and everything America represents.”
Both Quade and Rizzo called on the Republican leaders of Missouri to condemn the violence.
Trump supporters, some of whom openly carry guns, gathered outside the Missouri Capitol on Wednesday during the first day of the state’s legislative session. Capitol police chief Zim Schwartze said they were “calm and peaceful” and “abiding by the rules”.
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