Today is the first anniversary ofassault on Capitol Hill, Washington DC, where the United States Congress is based. Thousands of supporters of the outgoing president, Donald Trump, gathered here on January 6, 2021, with two goals: contest the outcome of the 2020 presidential election and support the request (made by Trump himself to Vice President Mike Pence and to Congress) to block the proclamation of Joe Biden in the White House.
On the morning of that day, Trump declared that he would never concede victory to Biden, criticized the media - guilty, according to him, of covering up the alleged fraud - and asked Pence to overturn the electoral result (a power which, moreover, does not fall within the constitutional prerogatives of the vice president). Trump then urged his supporters to march to the Capitol. Here is an excerpt from his speech:
“You will never take back our country with weakness. You have to exhibit strength and you have to be strong. We have come here to demand that Congress do the right thing and only count voters who have been legally nominated. I know each of you will soon be marching on Capitol Hill to ensure that your voice, peacefully and patriotically, is heard today. […] Fight. We fight like damned. And if you don't fight like the damned, there will be no country left for you. […] We're going to walk down Pennsylvania Avenue – I love Pennsylvania Avenue – and we're going to the Capitol and we're going to try and give [Republicans] the kind of pride and fire they need to take back our country."
If not criminally, then Trump was morally responsible for what happened next, when hundreds of his supporters invaded the Capitol and vandalized it. After breaching the security perimeter, most of the rioters entered the Congress building on foot, while others used ropes and makeshift ladders, smashing windows and spraying chemicals on the officers. Some rioters carried Confederate flags, Nazi emblems, and wore riot gear such as helmets, vests, and military gear. Outside the building, the mob was engaged in a guerrilla war against the police.
In those same minutes, Trump wrote a tweet in which he stated that Pence - who in the meantime had been taken to safety by the secret services - had not had "the courage to do what he should have".
The death toll speaks of five dead in all: four demonstrators and a policeman. More than fifty arrests. Explosive devices and weapons were found in the vicinity of the Republican and Democratic National Committees.
Law enforcement it took them more than three hours to regain control of the Capitol, using riot gear, shields and batons. As he wrote the New York Times, that of security around the American palaces of power was "a disastrous failure" that left the first members of Congress amazed. Some commentators went so far as to hypothesize some connivance with the rioters of the security apparatuses, who demonstrated an even improbable level of unpreparedness and inefficiency.
But the dispute is not over yet. Trump he had scheduled a press conference for today, which however he eventually had to cancel, officially for fear that the media would not provide adequate coverage of the event. The appointment with The Donald – who is working on re-nomination – is therefore postponed to the next meeting scheduled for January 15 in Arizona.
