"Never Give Up, Never Concede"

"THE REPUBLICAN PARTY AND, MORE IMPORTANTLY, OUR COUNTRY, NEEDS THE PRESIDENCY MORE THAN EVER BEFORE -- THE POWER OF THE VETO: STAY STRONG!"

"We will never give up. We will never concede. It doesn't happen. You don't concede when there's theft involved."  

"We won this election, and we won it by a landslide. This was not a close election."

"Our country has had enough and we will not take it any more."

U.S.President Donald Trump

Supporters of US President Donald Trump stormed the US Capitol on Wednesday    Reuters

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden  Getty Images

"[The actions of the protesters] borders on sedition."

"[For demonstrators to storm the Capitol, smash windows, occupy offices, invade the halls of Congress and threaten the safety of duly elected officials:] It's not a protest, it's insurrection."

"I call on this mob to pull back and allow the work of democracy to go forward."

"President Trump must demand on national television] an end to this siege."

"Let me be very clear; the scenes of chaos at the Capitol do not represent who we are. What we are seeing is a small number of extremists dedicated to lawlessness. This is not dissent, it's disorder. It borders on sedition, and it must end. Now."

President-elect Joe Biden

"The violence and destruction taking place at the U.S. Capitol Must Stop and it Must Stop Now."

"Anyone involved must respect Law Enforcement officers and immediately leave the building."

Vice President Mike Pence

 

"What happened at the U.S. Capitol today was an insurrection, incited by the President of the United States."

Utah Senator Mitt Romney

US Capitol Siege: Donald Trump supporters swarmed the US Capitol on Wednesday.

On Wednesday morning, protesters numbering in the thousands, dressed in MAGA caps and camouflage gear gathered at the Ellipse to hear their president address them. Encourage them. Praise them. Reiterate that the November presidential election had been fraught with illegal attempts to stop him from remaining in the Oval Office for a second term to serve America as the !Best President Ever! The election that had been stolen from Mr. Trump and the American people was an intolerable evil that must be countered and reversed.

 

The crowd roared their outrage, shouted their disgust, screamed that they would not allow their president to be replaced. "USA! USA! USA!" One person in the adoring crowd shouted: "Which way's the Revolution!" That was 11:00 a.m., Washington.

Hours later, the U.S. Senate was being addressed by Oklahoma Republican Senator James Lankford. Suddenly approached by an aide advising him that the protesters once gathered outside, were no longer outside. A crowd had toppled the barricades to storm through them to reach the fields leading to the
Capitol. Congress was meeting in the building to count electoral college votes confirming the election of the next president of the United States. Capitol police stood guard, unable to hold back the human tide.

Soon, shouting "forward!" hundreds of protestors scaled the barricades, kicked them aside and ran toward the steps of the Capitol, to be stopped by law enforcement while several made it through, scaling metal construction structures. They were tackled by police as dozens of law enforcement agents descended the steps. At the back of the Capitol building police released smoke explosives into the crowd, releasing a green irritant, dispersing some within the crowd who soon returned, putting on masks.

"We were just told that there has been tear gas in the rotunda and we're being instructed to each of us get gas masks that are under our seats", a video by Rep.Peter Welch a Vermont Democrat notified, posted on Twitter. As the House doors slammed shut, the U.S. Capitol Police warned: "Stay away from exterior windows, doors. If outside, seek cover". The police line-up was shoved up the steps on the east  side of the Capitol by the protesters, allowing a small group to break into the building.

President Trump had urged Mike Pence to overturn the election, but the vice-president stood in the House rebuffing the demand and issued a statement before addressing Congress, saying while he shares concerns of the "integrity" of the election, he lacked the legislative power to unilaterally overturn the results. Beginning with Alabama, the Electoral College results were presented alphabetically. When Arizona came up Republicans raised their first objection, planning to repeat objections for Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

A dozen Republican senators led by Senator Ted Cruz, alongside a majority of the 211 Republicans in the House were prepared to object to the College results, holding them to be ill-got and illegal. Before an hour had passed, Vice-President Pence was escorted from the Senate while police evacuated both Houses of Congress. House chamber lawmakers were advised to take possession of gas masks and prepare to wear them while officers at the front door of the House chamber held their weapons drawn against anyone attempting to enter.

Those in the chamber were ordered to drop to the floor for safety, then several hundred House members, staff and press were evacuated to a safe location, instructed to remain there. An ambulance pulled up to the southeast corner of the Capital just before 3:00 p.m. discharging a team of paramedics with a gurney rushing to the south side of the building. "White female, shot in the shoulder", a Capital Police Officer said as they rushed past him. The first casualty of a total of four left dead.

"I think we need to make a statement, make sure that we can calm individuals down", House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, a Republican from California said, calling on the president to produce a statement to calm the mob. From the Oval Office, the president tweeted a call to "stay peaceful. You have to go home now, we have to have peace", he said in a video posted to Twitter before the platform cut his account. 

As dusk se4ttled in, the entire District of Columbia National Guard force of 1,100 arrived and a citywide 6:00 p.m. curfew was announced. "I really don't hope for a civil war. But there are people who won't be pushed around. Americans aren't those kind of people", said Mike Wyatt, 44, who had driven to the Washington Monument from Missouri, for a final chance to 'save their country from a fraudulent election'. 

Supporters of President Donald Trump who are wearing attire associated with the Proud Boys attend a rally at Freedom Plaza, Saturday, Dec. 12, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Luis M. Alvarez)