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A3 THE ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, JANUARY 7, 2021 Chaos erupts as protesters storm Capitol Lawmakers evacuated amid Electoral College vote count By LISA MASCARO and MARY CLARE JALONICK Associated Press WASHINGTON — Angry supporters of Presi- dent Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol on Wednes- day in a chaotic protest aimed at thwarting a peace- ful transfer of power, forc- ing lawmakers to be rushed from the building and inter- rupting challenges to Presi- dent-elect Joe Biden’s Elec- toral College victory. In a video message, Trump urged supporters to “go home” but is also keep- ing up false attacks about the presidential election. The video was issued more than two hours after protesters began storming the Capitol. Trump had ear- lier egged them on to march to the Capitol before issuing a call for peace. Trump opened his video, saying, “I know your pain. I know your hurt. But you have to go home now.” He also went on to call the supporters “very spe- cial.” He also said, “we can’t play into the hands of these people. We have to have peace. So go home. We love you. You’re very special.” Wednesday’s ordinarily mundane procedure of Con- gress certifying a new presi- dent was always going to be extraordinary, with Repub- lican supporters of Trump vowing to protest results of an election that they have baselessly insisted was reversed by fraud. But even the unusual deliberations, which included the Republi- can vice president and Sen- ate majority leader defy- ing Trump’s demands, were quickly overtaken. In a raucous, out-of-con- trol scene, protesters fought past police and breached the building, shouting and waving Trump and Amer- ican fl ags as they marched through the halls. A woman who was shot inside the Capitol during the protest has died. The protesters abruptly interrupted the congressio- nal proceedings in an eerie scene that featured offi cial warnings directing people to duck under their seats for cover and put on gas masks after tear gas was used in the Capitol Rotunda. With the crowds showing no signs of abating, Trump tweeted, “Please support our Capitol Police and Law Enforcement. They are truly on the side of our Country. Stay peaceful!” Biden has called the vio- lent protests on the Capi- tol “an assault on the most sacred of American under- takings: the doing of the people’s business.” In a tweet Wednes- day afternoon, Vice Presi- dent Mike Pence said, “This attack on our Capitol will not be tolerated and those involved will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.” The Pentagon said about 1,100 D.C. National Guard members were being mobi- lized to help support law enforcement at the Capitol. Senators were being evacuated. Some House lawmakers tweeted they were sheltering in place in their offi ces. U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley and U.S. Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, all Oregon Dem- ocrats, said they were safe on Wednesday after the Trump supporters stormed the Capitol. In a statement, Wyden said, “What’s happening today in our nation’s Capitol is a direct assault on democ- racy, a riot by insurrection- ists that caps off four years of Donald Trump fanning the fl ames of fanaticism. Every Republican lawmaker who supported his efforts to overturn a legitimate elec- tion shares responsibility for the violence at the heart of Julio Cortez/AP Photo Supporters of President Donald Trump clash with police outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday. Consult a PROFESSIONAL If your Mac starts up with a question mark 1. Hold the power button down for 10 Astoria’s Best seconds, until your Mac turns off. 2. Turn it on and immediately press and hold these four keys together: Option, Command, P, and R. 3. 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Scott Applewhite/AP photo Police with guns drawn watch as protesters try to break into the House Chamber at the Capitol. ‘THE VOTERS, THE COURTS AND THE STATES ALL HAVE SPOKEN.’ Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell our democracy. “All Americans must be able to elect House and Senate members safe in the knowledge that their views will be represented in civil debate here in Con- gress without mob rule ever squelching that discussion.” Demonstrators fought with Capitol Police and then forced their way into the building, not long after a huge rally near the White House during which Trump egged them on to march to Capitol Hill. Lawmakers had con- vened for an extraordinary joint session to confi rm the Electoral College results. Though fellow Republi- cans were behind the chal- lenge to Biden’s 306-232 Electoral College victory, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell sought to lower tensions and argued against it. He warned the country “cannot keep drift- ing apart into two separate tribes” with “separate facts.” McConnell declared, “The voters, the courts and the states all have spoken.” But other Republicans, including House GOP lead- ers among Trump’s allies, were acting out the pleas of supporters at his huge Wednesday rally up Penn- sylvania Avenue outside the White House to “fi ght for Trump.” “We have to fi x this,” said Rep. Steve Scalise, of Loui- siana, the GOP whip. The last-gasp effort is all but certain to fail, defeated by bipartisan majorities in Congress prepared to accept the November results. Biden is to be inaugurated Jan. 20. Still, Trump vowed he would “never concede” and urged the massive crowd to march to the Capitol where hundreds had already gath- ered under tight security. “We will never give up,” Trump told his noontime rally. Pence was closely watched as he stepped onto the dais to preside over the joint session in the House chamber. Pence has a largely cer- emonial role, opening the sealed envelopes from the states after they are carried in mahogany boxes used for the occasion, and read- ing the results aloud. But he was under growing pres- sure from Trump to overturn the will of the voters and tip the results in the presi- dent’s favor, despite having no legal power to affect the outcome. “Do it Mike, this is a time for extreme courage!” Trump tweeted Wednesday. But Pence, in a state- ment shortly before presid- ing, defi ed Trump, saying he could not claim “unilateral authority” to reject the elec- toral votes that make Biden president. Despite Trump’s repeated claims of voter fraud, elec- tion offi cials and his own former attorney general have said there were no problems on a scale that would change the outcome. All the states have certifi ed their results as fair and accurate, by Repub- lican and Democratic offi - cials alike. Arizona was the fi rst of several states facing objec- tions from the Republicans as Congress took an alpha- betical reading of the elec- tion results. Then the chaos erupted. Associated Press writers Andrew Taylor, Jill Colvin and Kevin Freking in Wash- ington and Bill Barrow in Atlanta contributed to this report. a tool that we use that can gently move a Alicia M. Smith, DC specific bone in a specific direction. This Owner tool allows us to gently move the bone with little to no pain after treatment. It is safe for 503-325-3311 children, patients with osteoporosis, patients that are in high amounts of pain and patients 1490 Marine Dr., that are just not comfortable with manual Suite 202 Astoria, Oregon popping. We always do free consultations to see if you are even a chiropractic candidate. Q: Does oral health affect overall health? you probably A: Although understand that poor dental JEFFREY M. 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