Seeing Eye To Eye: A Factual Recollection of January 6, 2021

“I don’t know if we’ll ever see eye to eye on the events of that day,” said former Vice-President, Mike Pence in a June 2021 dinner talk to Republicans in Manchester, New Hampshire. That day is Wednesday, January 6, 2021, the day of the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. Ardent supporters of the belief that the 2020 U.S. Presidential election was stolen descended on the building in a last-ditch effort to stop the certification of President-elect, Joe Biden.

The person with whom Pence has an ongoing difference of perspective of the insurrection is his former superior and Biden’s challenger, former President Donald J. Trump. Trump encouraged the march to the Capitol a few hours before in a provocative speech to his audience. He believed Pence could supersede his mere ceremonial role and deny Biden’s certification based on Trump’s premise he won the election.

Despite the former President’s claim, the official results prove otherwise. He lost to Biden by 7,052,763 popular votes (81,268,924 – 74,216,154) and 74 electoral college votes (306 – 232). Since the race, Trump used every opportunity to promote the idea of a rigged contest to stoke the ire of his voters, which helped fuel the January 6th attack.

Continuing his reflection, Pence lamented, “As I said that day, January 6th was a dark day in the history of the United States Capitol. But thanks to the swift action of the Capitol Police and federal law enforcement, violence was quelled. The Capitol was secured.”

Unfortunately, that security came at a dire cost. Five U.S. Capitol police officers were casualties from the attack: Brian Sicknick, Gunther Hashida, Kyle DeFreytag, Jeffrey Smith, and Howard Liebengood. 100 police officers were also injured. To date, over 500 hundred rioters have been arrested with some receiving prison sentences as much as five years for their crimes.

On the other hand, Trump has sought to rewrite what occurred. He called his rally before the insurrection “loving.” During the siege at the Capitol, he claimed his followers were “hugging and kissing” Capitol police officers and had “great relationships” with them. Trump scheduled a press conference for today to offer his counter-interpretation but cancelled due to a swell of complaints from fellow Republicans.

Still, Trump portrays rioters as martyrs and patriots. An example of his narrative shift is the late Ashli Babbitt, a thirty-five-year-old woman who joined with the rioters to break the windows of doors leading to the Chamber of the U.S. House of Representatives. Babbitt climbed through one of the windows. A Capitol officer, Michael Byrd, shot her in the left shoulder, and she died at a nearby hospital from the injury.

Elsewhere on Capitol grounds, breachers chanted repeatedly, “Hang Mike Pence!” They seemingly hoped to make good on their threat with a noose on a gallow outside. Had it not been for the quick thinking of Capitol police officer, Eugene Goodman, to divert their attention, Pence would’ve met his would-be assailants head-on.

Fearing for their safety, Pence and his Congressional colleagues sheltered in the chamber and offices from the onslaught. In an interview with ABC News’s Jonathan Karl for his book “Betrayal”, Trump quickly deflected when asked about his concern for Pence’s welfare with “he was in good shape.” He focused instead on his followers citing their “anger.” Earlier that morning before the insurrection, the New York Times reported Trump called Pence to exert more pressure to deny Biden’s election win saying to him, “You can either go down in history as a patriot or you can go down in history as a p*ssy.” To this, Trump replied, “I wouldn’t dispute it.”

As the violence ensued, prominent television personalities, Laura Ingraham, Sean Hannity, Brian Kilemeade, and Trump’s eldest son, Donald, Jr., sent text messages to Trump’s Chief of Staff, Mark Meadows. They all urged him to convince the former President to tell his backers at the Capitol to go home. It would prove to be a hard sell for Meadows. Those around Trump said he enjoyed what he saw, and he boasted of the size of the crowd fighting for him. According to Republican representative, Jaime Herrera Beutler, Trump told House Republican leader, Kevin McCarthy, “Well, Kevin, I guess these people are more upset about the election than you are.”

In addition to Meadows’s role as a liaison, Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, pleaded directly to her father twice to end the uprising. Hours into the attack, Trump finally acquiesced and released a tweet and a brief video statement. In the video, he told those who marched on the Capitol, “We love you. You’re very special. You’ve seen what happens. You see the way others are treated that are so bad and so evil. I know how you feel, but go home, and go home in peace.”

Several hours after, he issued a follow-up tweet, “These are the things and events that happen when a sacred landslide election victory is so unceremoniously & viciously stripped away from great patriots who have been badly & unfairly treated for so long. Go home with love & in peace. Remember this day forever!”

Hannity, a close Trump ally and advisor, expressed growing concern about the former President before and after the siege. On December 31, 2020, he texted Meadows, “I do NOT see January 6 happening the way he is being told.” The eve of the insurrection, Hannity warned Meadows, “I’m very worried about the next 48 hours. Pence pressure. WH (White House) counsel will leave.”

Furthermore, Hannity sent another text message on January 10, 2021 to Meadows and House Republican representative, Jim Jordan. He wrote, “Guys, we have a clear path to land the plane in 9 days. He can’t mention the election again. Ever. I did not have a good call with him today. And worse, I’m not sure what is left to do or say, and I don’t like not knowing if it’s truly understood. Ideas?”

In the following days, Senate Republican leader, Mitch McConnell, said in a public address that Trump was “practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of the day. No question about it. The people who stormed this building believed they were acting on the wishes and instructions of their President. And having that belief was a foreseeable consequence of the growing crescendo of false statements, conspiracy theories, and reckless hyperbole, which the defeated President kept shouting into the largest megaphone on planet earth.”

Similarly, McCarthy echoed his Senate counterpart: “The President bears responsibility for the attack on Congress by mob rioters. He should have immediately denounced the mob when he saw what was unfolding. These facts require immediate action for President Trump. Accept his share of responsibility, quell the broiling unrest, and ensure President-elect Biden is able to successfully begin his term.”

However, McCarthy has since attempted to alter his observation in subsequent statements. Other Republican lawmakers are falling in line with McCarthy save Senators Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger. Both are members of a bipartisan commission to give an accurate record of the insurrection and the events leading up to it.

As I relive that fateful day, it was painful for me to see democracy almost shaken to its core. Nevertheless, I can’t ignore or diminish the horror that occurred on January 6, 2021 at the U.S. Capitol. Philosopher George Santayana said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” There has to be a true account of that day. This is above politics and tribalism. Everyone involved must be held liable so what my eyes and the eyes of millions around the world saw never happens again.

Sources (clicked link will open in a new window):

Article: “WATCH: Pence says he’ll likely never see eye to eye with Trump on Jan. 6”

Report: “2020 President Election Vote Totals”
Electoral College Votes – page 1 of 12 (Biden and Trump totals)
Popular Votes – Biden total: page 2 of 12 | Trump total: page of 8 of 12

Report: “2020 Electoral College Results”

Article: “Trump summoned supporters to ‘wild’ protest, and told them to fight. They did”

Article: “Four officers who responded to U.S. Capitol attack have died by suicide”

Article: “Capitol rioters hit with severe sentences and sharp reprimands from judges”

Article: “Trump cancels Jan. 6 event amid GOP complaints”

Article: “Scoop: Inside Trump’s Jan. 6 cancellation”

Report: “Department of Justice Closes Investigation into the Death of Ashli Babbitt”

Video: “Capitol Police Officer Who Killed Ashli Babbitt While Defending House Chamber Speaks Out”

Article: “Trump wishes Ashli Babbitt happy birthday, calls for reopened investigation”

Article: “New Capitol riot footage shows cop Eugene Goodman protect Pence, Romney”

Video: “Trump supporters threaten to hang Mike Pence at Capitol”

Article: “VIDEO: Pro-Trump mob chants ‘hang Mike Pence!’ prompting Twitter to block the phrase after it begins trending”

Book: “Betrayal: The Final Act of the Trump Show” by Jonathan Karl

Article: “‘You Can Be a Patriot or You Can Be a P*ssy’: Trump Confirms He Bullied Pence on Jan. 6”

Twitter Post (@ABCPolitics): “EXCLUSIVE: @jonkarl’s new book reveals former Pres. Trump pressured former Vice Pres. Pence the morning of Jan. 6, saying “you can be a patriot or you can be a *****.’”

Article: “‘He Is Destroying His Legacy’: Read Highlights From The Text Messages to Mark Meadows”

Article: “Watching Jan. 6 Capitol riot unfold, Trump liked what he saw, boasted about crowd size, sources say”

Twitter Post (@HerreraBeutler): “Herrera Beutler Again Confirms Conversation with McCarthy Regarding January 6 U.S. Capitol Attack”

Article: “Trump told McCarthy that rioters ‘more upset about the election than you are’: report”