With the blood of Ashli Babbitt, a 14-year veteran of the United States Air Force, washed off the Capitol grounds and into the pages of history, President Trump issued a statement insisting there would be an orderly transition of power from his administration to that of President-Elect Joe Biden’s.
In the aftermath of a chaotic day that saw an enormous crowd descend on the nation’s Capitol, the joint session of Congress charged with certifying the Electoral College slates of electors completed their task, in the dark of night, certifying Democrat Joe Biden as the 46th President of the United States.
President Trump, as he continuously promised over the past several months, issued a statement reassuring a rattled nation that there would, indeed, be an orderly transition of power.
“Even though I totally disagree with the outcome of the election, and the facts bear me out, nevertheless there will be an orderly transition on January 20th,” President Trump said. “I have always said we would continue our fight to ensure that only legal votes were counted. While this represents the end of the greatest first term in presidential history, it’s only the beginning of our fight to Make America Great Again!”
Statement by President Donald J. Trump on the Electoral Certification:
“Even though I totally disagree with the outcome of the election, and the facts bear me out, nevertheless there will be an orderly transition on January 20th. I have always said we would continue our…
— Dan Scavino
(@DanScavino) January 7, 2021
Shortly after his statement, many in his inner circle started to announce their resignations.
Earlier in the day, Senators and US Representatives who had publicly stated they would stand to challenge the illegitimate votes in at least five battleground states, abandoned their efforts citing the chaos and violence that took place on Capitol Hill.
“I cannot now in good conscience object to the certification of these electors.”
Sen. @KLoeffler and other GOP senators reversed course in their plans to object to #ElectoralCollege votes following the civil unrest that broke at the US #Capitol. https://t.co/VNpxH0lKQF
— The Epoch Times (@EpochTimes) January 7, 2021
Advancing from a rally where the President had urged supporters to make their way “peacefully” to Capitol Hill to support those who had promised to challenge arguably troubled elections in the several battleground states, a huge crowd – including a majority of Trump supporters but also those who attended to incite anger and beyond – descended on the Capitol building where massive chaos, violence, and vandalism ensued.
According to a Capitol Police spokesperson, 52 people were arrested. Of those 52 arrested, 47 were 6pm local time curfew violations set by DC Mayor Muriel Bowser. 26 others were arrested on Capitol grounds and several others were detained for carrying firearms, either without a license or unlawfully.
Ashli Babbitt, a 14-year veteran of the US Air Force – who served four tours of duty as a “high-level security officer,” was shot and killed by a DC police officer during the unrest. Babbitt was unarmed. It remains to be seen if authorities will respond to her unwarranted shooting as they did after the death of George Floyd, an ex-felon who was under the influence of narcotics at the time of his arrest.
Two pipe bombs were recovered from the headquarters of the Republican National Commission and the Democrat National Committee. A cooler was retrieved from a vehicle on US Capitol grounds that contained a cache of Molotov cocktails. The use of explosives and Molotov cocktails is a signature of Anarchist groups.