On the morning of January 6th, 2021, in the shadow of Pennsylvania Avenue, Incumbent President Donald J. Trump gave a rallying speech to his supporters. Since his loss in the 2020 Presidential Election to President-Elect Joesph R. Biden, the current President had been parroting false, poorly backed claims of election fraud to his supporters. Later that same day, we saw the consequences. 

The expansive group of a thousand so called “patriots” marched down Pennsylvania Avenue, in a feign attempt to pressure current Vice President Michael R. Pence into overturning the legitimate election results and declare Donald J. Trump the winner. The process of counting the electoral college votes is purely ceremonial, and the Vice President lacked any power to overturn said results. The process went on as followed, until the flood gates were opened. 

Thousands of rioters stormed into the Capitol building, forcing the numerous senators and representatives to shelter. The group, some armed, walked in unopposed, as the call for the National Guard was strangely delayed. They began to tear up a place people claim as a temple of democracy and stolen many representatives’ and personal items. It took until that evening to finally clear out the Capitol building, and the counting of the electoral college votes continued after a period. 

January 6th, 2021 will go down as one of the bleakest days in modern American history. It was the first time since the War of 1812 where the capitol building had been breached, and the first time in history where a president had instigated it. Incumbent President Donald J. Trump is now facing growing calls for him to resign, and a hastening impeachment process on the grounds of insurrection. The attacks on the hub of our democracy should be regarded as nothing less than an act of domestic terror, and the people who were involved, as well as the people who gaslighted the situation, should be punished accordingly.