Congress readies a no-drama certification of Trump's win, 4 years after the Capitol riot
WASHINGTON ? Four years ago, thousands of Americans violently took control of Congress in an effort to stop the peaceful transfer of power. The Capitol Riot was such a wild deviation from the time-honored process of certifying a presidential election that it bears almost no resemblance to what's expected this January 6.
As Congress prepares to officially count the electoral votes and declare President-elect Donald Trump the winner on Monday, memories of the 2021 attack have dimmed for some, while others see it as an unforgettable tragedy for American democracy.
Monday's certification comes amid an ongoing campaign by Trump and his allies to change the well-documented account of what actually happened at the Capitol in 2021.
In the immediate aftermath four years ago, Trump called the insurrection a "heinous attack," but his condemnation soon faded. Last October, he praised the storming of the Capitol as a "day of love."
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One way of recalling the events of 2021 might be to compare what took place on that astonishing January day with the brief, orderly formalities Americans can expect at the Capitol on Monday.
Certifying the Electoral College's vote is a perfunctory ceremony.
On Monday, the House and Senate will meet jointly. Vice President Kamala Harris will preside.
The chambers will appoint members as "tellers" to count the votes, weigh any objections ? and then formally announce who won.
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“The Biden-Harris administration is cooperating with President Trump and the transition team to ensure a smooth transition of power," spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said in a statement. "When Kamala Harris certifies the election results, President Trump will deliver on his promise to serve ALL Americans and will unify the country through success.”
In 2009, it took 36 minutes to name Barack Obama president. In 2013, Obama's reelection was certified in 22 minutes. In 2017, confirmation of Trump's victory lasted 41 minutes.
In 2021, when a mob violently took control of the Capitol complex, it took 14 hours and 48 minutes to name Joe Biden the winner.
'Political prisoners' on a 'tourist visit'?
More than 1,500 people have been charged in the years since the insurrection, with the FBI still making as many as 30 arrests a month.
But there has been a concerted effort on the right to change the narrative about the insurreciton, said University of Chicago professor Robert Pape, who tracks political violence.
One Republican representative called it "a normal tourist visit." Others described the rioters as respectful. Trump has called those charged in the riot "political prisoners" and patriots. He's promised to begin pardoning them as soon as he's sworn in on Jan. 20.
An estimated 10,000 people broke through police barriers to enter Capitol grounds on Jan. 6, Pape said. Of those, an estimated 2,000 entered the Capitol itself.
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The riot led to four deaths, including a demonstrator who was shot as she tried to reach fleeing lawmakers. A Capitol police officer died of strokes the day after and four others have taken their own lives since then. More than 150 officers were injured, many permanently.
Nothing like that is expected this Monday, Jan. 6, as Vice President Harris, in her role as president of the Senate, formally endorses her own election defeat.
Here is a closer look at what happened Jan. 6, 2021.
11:57 a.m. Trump speech begins at the White House ellipse
Trump claims he lost due to election fraud and later tells the crowd, "I know that everyone here will soon be marching over to the Capitol building to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard."
12:45 p.m. Pipe bombs are found at the Republican National Committee and the Democratic National Committee.
12:53 p.m. Rioters punch through the first outdoor barrier near the West front of the Capitol building. Capitol Police Officer Caroline Edwards is the first law enforcement member injured, as the back of her head strikes the corner of a cement step, causing a traumatic brain injury.
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1 p.m. Senators cross the building to begin certifying Biden's election
1:05 p.m. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., gavels in the joint session of Congress.
1:09 p.m. At the ellipse, Trump ends his speech by telling the crowd to march on Congress. "We fight like hell," he says. "And if you don't fight like hell, you're not going to have a country anymore."
1:12 p.m. Echoing Trump's claims of voter fraud, Republicans object to Arizona's electoral votes, forcing the House and Senate to split up to deliberate the objection in their separate chambers.
At 2:05 p.m., officers battle the crowd over metal bike racks on the Capitol's lower West terrace. Dale Huttle of Indiana hits two officers with an upside-down American flag on a pole, spearing one in the gut until he falls down the stairs, permanently injuring his back.
2:11 p.m. Rioters first breach the building, using a helmet and board to break the glass in a small alcove. They open several doors to the Senate wing.
2:24 p.m. Trump tweets his anger at Pence
"Mike Pence didn't have the courage to do what should have been done to protect our Country and our Constitution..." Trump writes, faulting Vice President Pence for agreeing to certify Biden's victory.
Phone notifications ripple through the crowd. Social media videos show chants of "hang Mike Pence" become louder and more frequent.
At about 2:25 p.m., rioters who entered through the Senate wing doors reach the empty Rotunda, remove a barricade and open doors to the crowd on the Capitol's eastern front. William Gallagher of Georgia is in the first wave at 2:26 p.m.
A handful of Capitol Police place themselves between the rioters inside the room and the doors, but they're outnumbered. Gallagher is seen in surveillance footage pulling an officer away with the help of a second rioter.
Police fight to keep the crowd within the Rotunda, giving colleagues precious minutes to secure the House chamber and allow representatives time to escape.
2:25 p.m. The Secret Service rushes Pence out of the Senate and down a little-used set of stairs. He comes within 40 feet of the rioters, according to later House testimony.
2:28 p.m. Retired New York City police officer Thomas Webster shoves through the metal gates police are using to secure the lower west plaza and tackles an officer to the ground. He chokes the officer with his gas mask and helmet. The mob surrounds them and kicks the officer for several minutes. Webster was sentenced to ten years in jail.
2:30 p.m. Senators evacuate
Security footage shows women removing their heels to run down a lengthy tunnel to a safe room. Staff members struggle with the large boxes full of electoral votes. Their quick thinking prevents rioters from gaining control of the official records sent by the states declaring which candidate received the most votes.
Rioters enter the Senate chamber through an unlocked door in the upper gallery. They jump down to the Senate floor and open the doors to the crowd outside, who climb onto the dais and take selfies. Retired Air Force Lt. Col. Larry Brock of Texas rifles through senators' desks.
Other rioters break into offices, pound on doors, spray fire extinguishers and climb statues. A red, blood-like substance is smeared across a bust of President Zachary Taylor.
Pelosi's staff hides in a barricaded conference room for hours as rioters trash her office suite. Richard Barnett of Arkansas props his feet up on Pelosi's desk for a photo and scrawls a note telling her he was there. He carries a Zap Hike ‘N Strike Walking Staff with spike electrodes. He was convicted in 2023.
2:36 p.m. The Rotunda crowd forces Capitol Police to the main House chamber doors. Officers duck as rioters shatter the glass on the doors. Officers inside stand, guns drawn, and scream for the dozens of remaining representatives, staff and reporters to hide.
The crowd barely responds as police lob smoke grenades and tear gas cannisters.
2:44 p.m. Mob reaches the House Speaker's lobby
San Diego Air Force veteran Ashli Babbitt begins crawling through a hole rioters have broken in the glass of a door barricaded with antique furniture. Members of Congress are still evacuating. After Babbitt ignores repeated orders to back down, a Capitol Police officer fires a single round, fatally striking her left shoulder.
As members of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers militias storm the building, an arsenal assembled by the Oath Keepers waits at a hotel room in nearby Virginia. "I had not seen that many weapons in one location since I was in the military," a witness later testifies at the trial of Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes, who is convicted of seditious conspiracy.
Police outside the building are focused on defending one of the West front's main entrances, now known as the tunnel.
Officers are bludgeoned and sprayed with chemical irritants during a two-hour struggle. Trump State Department appointee Federico Klein of Virginia uses a stolen police shield as a wedge to prevent officers from closing a door to the building. He was convicted in 2023.
Trump's family, staff and FOX News personalities plead with the president to intervene, but are rebuffed or ignored, according to House testimony and text messages turned over by former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows.
2:51 p.m. Police reach the third floor of the Capitol to evacuate representatives and reporters locked inside. Officers carrying assault-style weapons order rioters to the ground. Security footage shows one officer pointing a grenade or tear-gas launcher at rioters’ heads as members of Congress rush down a nearby staircase, slipping on the fire extinguisher residue that coats the stairs.
3:06 p.m. As police and rioters fight over the tunnel, an officer is crushed between the door and a stolen shield. Steven Cappuccio of Texas forcefully yanks a gas mask away from the pinned officer's face and beats him with his own baton. He was convicted in 2023.
4:11 p.m. Body camera footage shows Vincent Gillespie screaming “traitor” and “treason" as he uses a police shield to batter officers at the tunnel entrance. He was found guilty on four counts including assault.
4:17 p.m. Trump, in Twitter video, tells rioters to 'go home. We love you, you're very special.'
Moments later, the crowd begins to disperse.
Around 5:30 p.m., the House’s top security official announces rioters have been cleared.
8 p.m. The Capitol complex is officially declared secure.
At 8:06 p.m. Vice President Pence gavels the Senate back into session. "Today was a dark day in the history of the United States Capitol," he says.
The House returns at 9:09 p.m.
3:44 a.m., January 7: After more objections from Republican lawmakers, Pence announces that Congress has certified Joe Biden’s election.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: How a raging mob took over the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021