@prashanthamine
Mumbai: On Thursday morning world watched in utter horror at the unruly and shocking scenes of Trump supporters scaling the walls of Capitol Hill building in Washington DC (District Colombia) storming the Senate and trying to block the Electoral College Vote Count (ECVC) that was underway. Senators, Congressmen cutting across party lines urged Vice President Mike Pence to invoke Article 25 which provides for removal of the President of the United States of America if he fails to uphold the Constitution and democratic values and traditions.
The unruly, chaotic scenes at the Capitol Hill left one woman dead and several other seriously injured as local police, federal police opened fire to quell the rampaging mob. Washington DC Mayor Muriel Bowser has enforced a 15 day lockdown of the district well pass the Inauguration Day on January 20 just to ensure there is no further rioting in the streets.
Social media platforms, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram have instantly suspended Trumps accounts for next 12 hours. US Diplomats abroad have been asked to suspend all their social media accounts until further notice.
Earlier in the day, Democrats accused President Donald Trump of inciting his supporters to march on to Capitol Hill. Trump later while asking his supporters to go back, did not however condemn their act and still argued that the election was stolen from them. President elect Joe Biden termed it as insurrection and demanded that Trump condemn the violence. Trump later in a recorded video message called for peace and urged the supporters to go back home.
The writing on the wall was clear for Trump as he desperately made last ditch attempt to overturn the November 2020 elections. His Vice President Mike Pence and Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell broke ranks with Trump and condemned what had happened at the Capitol Hill in the morning.
Senator Mitch McConnell remarked “overturning the 2020 Presidential election results would damage our republic forever”. He further went on to add, “The United States and the Senate will not be intimidated. We are back at our posts. We will discharge our duty under the constitution for our nation…. I will vote to respect the American people’s decision and defend our system of government… The voters, the courts and the states have all spoken… If we overrule them it would damage our republic forever… Vote to respect the people’s decision and defend our system of government as we know it”.
The last nail in the coffin as it were for Trump was when his Vice President Mike Pence termed it as the darkest day in US history. Condemning the rioting, he said that the swift action by the local police and federal police has secured the building. Thanking the law enforcement agencies for securing them, Pence stated that although peaceful protest is the right of every American, but this attack on our Capitol will not be tolerated and those involved will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
The turn of events have left the Republican Party badly scarred and vertically divided. Republican Senator Michael McCaul admitted that the events have left the Republicans deeply divided. Matters were made worse for the Republicans as they lost two seats in Georgia thereby effectively giving Democrats control of the Senate and the Congress as well.
US Constitutional experts argued that US Vice President Mike Pence had limited ministerial role to play in the ECVC process and could not overturn the election results in favor of Trump. They argued that even the Republican appointed judges in the district and Supreme Court have rejected the 60 appeals filed challenging the November 2020 election results.
Riotous mobs scaled the walls of the Capitol Hill building and locked up House of Representative Speaker Nancy Pelosi and several other Senators and Congressmen. The counting of Electoral College votes could only resume after the building was secured by the police.
Vice President Mike Pence then resumed the Electoral College Vote Count and was seen rushing through all the 50 states. Most of the Republican Senators and Congressmen like Lindsey Graham announced their decision to withdraw their objections to the Electoral College vote count. Almost all the objections to the Electoral College vote count have been rejected by an overwhelming margin
World leaders condemned the unfolding scenes at the Capitol Hill. Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his tweet remarked “Distressed to see news about rioting and violence in Washington DC. Orderly and peaceful transfer of power must continue. The democratic process cannot be allowed to be subverted through unlawful protests.
Former US president Bill Clinton accused Trump of igniting the fire. President elect Joe Biden remarked that the images at the Capitol Hill do not reflect the true image of America. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson termed it as disgraceful scenes in US Congress. French President Emmanuel Macron argued that the French believe in democracy and upholding democratic values. So far Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping have not reacted to the developments in Washington.
