The day American democracy was shaken
On Monday, the US Congress formally confirmed the results of the previous presidential election, which Donald Trump won. Exactly four years before that, however, the Capitol was the scene of a violent attack by supporters of the then president-elect.
The attackers assaulted police officers with fists, flagpoles and pepper spray, kicking or stomping on some as they lay on the ground. More than a hundred police officers sustained injuries, and four later took their own lives. On January 6, 2021, demonstrators broke into the Capitol building by smashing windows and breaking down doors. Some destroyed equipment in congressmen’s offices, took items as souvenirs, and even committed acts of rudeness against members who had to take cover behind desks with gas masks. The crowd also threatened Vice President Mike Pence, with some chanting calls for his hanging. The MPs were evacuated but later returned and completed the certification of Joe Biden’s victory.
Many politicians have blamed outgoing President Trump for the riots. Mitch McConnell, then the Republican head of the Senate, called the crowd manipulated by lies spread by Trump and other influential figures. A January 2021 poll showed that nearly 60 percent of Americans did not want Trump to hold political office in the future. On the other hand, two-thirds of Republican voters expressed the belief that Biden’s victory was not legitimate.Trump initially responded to the riots with criticism, condemning the violence as “hyenism” and promising to punish the perpetrators. Later, however, his allies and the conservative media began to downplay the events and spread conspiracy theories. Some claimed that infiltrators from government circles had instigated the violence or that it was the work of masked Antifa members. Republican Andrew Clyde called the attack on the Capitol a “routine tourist tour,” while Tucker Carlson of Fox News produced a documentary claiming that the events were staged by Democrats to damage the conservative movement.Gradually, the rhetoric of Trump’s supporters changed. The perpetrators of the riots were portrayed as patriots, victims of the system and heroes. Trump described them as “beautiful people” and called 6 January “the day of love”. A key moment of this change was the release of the Justice for All recording, where Trump and the imprisoned attackers recited the national anthem together. The recording went viral on social media and was used at Trump’s campaign rallies. Trump has also promised to pardon all those convicted if he is re-elected president, a move that most Americans reject. A CNN poll showed that 59 percent of respondents disagree with the idea of pardons for those involved in violence. Yet the Capitol riots have not become a focal point of the assessment of Trump’s first presidential term. Only five percent of respondents cited the events of January 6 as a key moment in his administration, which analysts say enabled Trump’s political comeback.
Joe Biden, whose victory Trump still has not acknowledged, in his text for The Washington Post stressed the need to preserve the truthful image of this event. He warned of attempts to manipulate the facts and downplay the whole incident. At the same time, he promised a peaceful transfer of power, which was overseen by Vice President Kamala Harris.
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