A week ago, another accusation would have seemed out of the question, with the Democratic Party just a few days away from taking control of all three of the power levers in Washington and finally saying goodbye to Trump.
But after that During the few frightening hours on Wednesday, Trump’s own supporters made the Capitol one of the least safe places in Washington, DC, and Pelosi and her entire Democratic caucus cannot forget it.
“I think Nancy also looks at this and says: how do you not react – if the president puts your people at risk of harm or death – in the strongest possible way?” Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) Said in an interview.
The emotional toll will have a lasting effect on Pelosi and her caucus. About two dozen Democrats were locked in the chamber on Wednesday, and some called their families frantically in case they had to say goodbye, as members of an armed crowd eventually many more lawmakers barricaded themselves in their offices, where they worked with staff to push desks and couches in front of the doors.
“We are a family. These were the words used over and over again in the caucus call, ‘said Madeleine Dean (D-Pa.), Who was among the members of the chamber. She remembers when Pelosi and other Democrats met by telephone for the first time since the attack on an emotional caucus call. “She talked about her staff, how she was so concerned about her staff and other people’s staff.”
Pelosi was one of the multiple Democrats during the 3.5-hour call Friday to encourage members and their staff to seek advice for the trauma they experienced that day. Support staff should also have access to the same mental health services, Pelosi said, noting how they also form an integral part of the Capitol core.
“Some interviewers call me ‘Momma,'” Pelosi was quoted as saying by several Democrats.
Pelosi has repeatedly urged lawmakers and staff to seek support for mental health after going through the horrific assault on the Capitol, including on a lengthy call with her caucus Monday.
For Pelosi and many others, the images of violence haunt Wednesday – rioters in tactical gear storm through the Capitol, looting offices, including her own, before turning on police, trying to smash one into a door and a drag others out of the building and hit him with a flagpole. Hours earlier, Trump had instructed his supporters to march to the Capitol, promising that the election was over and that he would never concede.
As she sends her caucus through the emotional wreckage of the attack, Pelosi also has: becomes once again the main voice for the accusation of a president who has also been one of her biggest antagonists for four years. Contrary to the long march to her support for accusation in 2019, Pelosi accepted this time within hours.
“One of the things people do not appreciate about her is that she has a deep, deep respect for our Capitol, democracy and the presidency,” said House Democratic Caucus President Hakeem Jeffries (DN.Y.) , a close ally of the speaker.
The rest of Pelosi’s caucus, with the same exception, quickly came to the same conclusion as she did. Democrats announced Monday that they will vote Wednesday to accuse Trump after gaining enough votes for it, unless Vice President Mike Pence acts unilaterally before then to declare the president unfit for office.
This is a striking display of cold unity for Pelosi, who fought her return to the presidency two years ago after a group of Democratic protesters tried to end her long leadership period. And many in her caucus for the next two years have already predicted a tense atmosphere in the caucus, which they saw as inevitable if a large tent party had such a razor-sharp majority.
Instead, almost every House Democrat – including freshmen who were sworn in a few days ago – quickly stood up in favor of accusations.
Even some of the Democrats’ most pro-accused Democrats were shocked at the speed of their caucus and the support of their leadership.
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) – who was taken out of the room just as rioters stormed the Capitol on Wednesday – started speaking almost immediately after reaching a safe place. She was in the same room as Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and a handful of others.
As they sat for hours together, Omar Steny Hoyer, the leader of the House majority, approached him to tell him that she would draft an article of accusation for Trump’s role in inciting the riots. According to several people familiar with the discussions, he encouraged her to do what she had to.
Across from the Capitol complex, a group of members of the House Judge – representatives David Cicilline of Rhode Island and Ted Lieu of California – were also barricaded together in an office because they first had the idea of drafting more articles on indictment let float.
When the Democrats quickly started spreading their concept, Pelosi was also on her phone non-stop. Since the attack, she has spoken to almost every member of her caucus, brought texts and called late at night – not unlike the Democrats’ first path to accusation in 2019.
Twenty-four hours after the attack on the Capitol began, Pelosi climbed onto the podium to issue a decisive warning – Trump was a riotous threat to the country and if Pence did not act immediately to remove him, would the Democrats do it.
In a building that was almost empty, but for the staff that was repairing the damage, Pelosi described Trump’s role in ‘the merry desecration of the American Capitol’ and the target of members of Congress as’ horrors that the history of our country will forever be tarnished. ‘
Two years ago, for months, Pelosi carefully managed every step her caucus took to accuse Trump. She listened intently to the moderate freshmen who helped the Democrats win back the House, and only promised to continue when a significant group of them – all with a background in national security – decided to say yes. voice, announce.
Democrats across the caucus, including members focused on national security, say the decision to prosecute was simpler after what they went through on Wednesday.
“I really believe that people in their offices are barred from making such decisions,” said Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.) Said in an interview about her decision to support accusation. ‘There’s nothing more clear than when your life is in danger. “