They spoke with ABC News Congressional Correspondent Rachel Scott.
by Rachel Scott, Mariam Khan, and Benjamin Siegel
ABC News
January 6, 2022, 3:06 AM
3. Intentional and Negligent Infliction of Emotional Distress (Swalwell Counts 6 and 7)
Swalwell asserts a claim of intentional infliction of emotional distress (IIED) and an additional claim of negligence infliction of emotional distress (NIED). To state a claim for IIED, a plaintiff must allege “(1) extreme and outrageous conduct on the part of the defendant which (2) intentionally or recklessly (3) causes the plaintiff [to suffer] severe emotional distress.” Ortberg v. Goldman Sachs Grp., 64 A.3d 158, 163 (D.C. 2013). To state a claim for NIED, a plaintiff must plead that (1) the defendant acted negligently, (2) the plaintiff suffered either a physical impact or was within the ‘zone of danger’ of the defendant’s actions, and (3) the plaintiff suffered emotional distress that was “serious and verifiable.” Wright v. United States, 963 F. Supp. 7, 18 (D.D.C. 1997) (quoting Jones v. Howard Univ., Inc., 589 A.2d 419, 424 (D.C. 1991)).38 President Trump argues that Swalwell’s pleading falls short on the first and third elements on both claims. Swalwell Trump Mot. at 36–37. The court agrees as to the third element of both claims.
“Severe emotional distress” for purposes of a IIED claim is a high bar. It “requires a showing beyond mere ‘mental anguish and stress’ and must be ‘of so acute a nature that harmful physical consequences are likely to result.’” Competitive Enterprise v. Mann, 150 A.3d 1213, 1261 (D.C. 2016). “Serious and verifiable” distress for an NIED claim is a lower bar, but it must manifest in some concrete way, such as “by an external condition or by symptoms clearly indicative of a resultant pathological, physiological, or mental state.” Jones v. Howard Univ., Inc., 589 A.2d 419, 424 (D.C. 1991) (emphasis omitted). Swalwell’s pleading meets neither of these standards. His pleading is largely conclusory. Swalwell Compl. ¶ 223 (alleging that “Defendants’ actions caused severe emotional distress”); id. ¶ 226 (alleging that “plaintiff suffered severe emotional distress”). Swalwell does, however, describe his thoughts and emotions when he was in the House chamber, heard rioters pounding on the door and smashing glass to enter, and saw Capitol police draw their weapons and barricade the entrances. Id. ¶ 224. He states that, during these events, he texted his wife, “I love you very much. And our babies.” Id. ¶ 225. The court does not minimize the trauma and shock Swalwell felt on January 6th, but his pleading simply does not meet the high bar for either an IIED or NIED claim. Those counts will be dismissed.
Before moving to the next claim, the court notes that the Blassingame Plaintiffs also brought an IIED claim (Count 3). They have voluntarily dismissed that claim. Blassingame Pls.’ Opp’n at 32 n.12. That count will be dismissed without prejudice.
-- Memorandum Opinion and Order, Bennie Thompson, et al., v. Donald J. Trump, USDC for the District of Columbia, by Judge Amit P. Mehta, February 18, 2022
Survivors of Jan. 6 riot open up about their trauma and healing 1 year later. ABC News congressional correspondent Rachel Scott speaks with lawmakers and staffers who were both witnesses and victims to the deadly insurrection. Drew Angerer/Getty Images, FILE
One year after the violent attack on Capitol Hill by a mob seeking to overturn the 2020 presidential election results, many House lawmakers are still struggling to wrap their heads around the brutality of that day.
"It's really hard to believe it because it still feels like it was just yesterday. All of the memories feel just as fresh and raw. The enormity of what we faced – our lives, our democracy, the fragility of all of that, it’s still hard to process," Rep. Pramila Jayapal, a Democrat from Washington state, told ABC News during a sit-down interview in late December.
The chaos and violence unfolded over the course of a few hours on that fateful day. But for many who were there, including lawmakers, legislative aides, members of the press, and Capitol Police officers -- the trauma still lingers.
Drew Angerer/Getty Images, FILE. A member of the U.S. Capitol police rushes Rep. Dan Meuser out of the House Chamber as protesters try to enter the House Chamber during a joint session of Congress in Washington, Jan. 06, 2021.
ABC News sat down for an in-depth interview with several House Democrats who were in the gallery of the House chamber last year on January 6, 2021. They experienced firsthand the terror as rioters attempted to breach the chamber.
"I never thought I would be in the Capitol of the United States of America and be attacked by other Americans," Rep. Mikie Sherrill, D-N.J., told ABC News.
PHOTO: Tear gas is fired at supporters of President Trump who stormed the United States Capitol building in Washington, Jan. 6, 2021. The Washington Post via Getty Images, FILE
The images and sounds of that day are unforgettable: the gunfire, shattered glass, a noose at the foot of the Capitol’s sprawling green lawn.
Trump supporters -- brandishing flags, poles, and other makeshift weapons, storming the venerated building, an American symbol of democracy.
On Jan. 6, ABC News Live will provide all-day coverage of events marking one year since the attack on the U.S. Capitol and the continuing fallout for American democracy.
PHOTO: People are seen in the House gallery wearing emergency gas masks as rioters try to break into the House chamber at the U.S. Capitol, Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. Andrew Harnik/AP
The group of lawmakers, trapped above the House chamber in the gallery, were at one point instructed to reach for gas masks stored under their seats.
"Initially for me it was just, how do you get out? I wasn't even thinking fear. I mean, we didn't even know how to open the gas masks in the gallery," Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester, D-Del., said.
Rep. Blunt Rochester said she knelt in prayer as the violence erupted just outside the chamber, which she said evoked a flood of emotions and imagery.
"When we prayed, that made me feel back to the word: faith. Like all in that balcony, in that gallery, I could just feel every ancestor. I could feel slavery, Jim Crow, everything, all of the bad things that have to wake you up to what the reality is," Blunt Rochester said.
Rep. Jason Crow, a former U.S. Army Ranger, took cover as his military training and instincts kicked in.
"I will admit that I still harbor feelings of anger and resentment," Crow, a Democrat from Colorado, said. "I never thought that I would be thrust back into that mindset again. But for a brief moment there, I snapped back in to that 'Jason Crow, Army Ranger' mindset and was preparing myself to potentially have to take life again, to protect us and get out. And that wasn't a great place to be in."
Jayapal admitted she has struggled to return to the place of such sorrow. She has not returned to the gallery where she was seated in the chamber that day.
"I think about it all the time. And every time I get an alert on my phone … I feel my heart starting to race a little bit more, more anxiety. I haven’t gone back to the gallery since that day. I haven’t. That night they told us to go back to the same place that we had been, and I was like, I'm not going back," Jayapal said.
"It was traumatic. It was returning to a place of trauma," Jayapal added.
PHOTO: Supporters of President Trump storm the United States Capitol building on Jan. 6, 2021. The Washington Post via Getty Images, FILE
Supporters of President Trump storm the United States Capitol building on Jan. 6, 2021.
The group of Democrats together in the gallery that day by chance, now bonded forever by the trauma.
"Nobody can go through an experience like that experience trauma, not having some impact," Crow said. "And getting help is not a sign of weakness. It's a sign of strength."
They have stayed in touch using a group text message to communicate their thoughts and feelings, and also holding group therapy sessions with a psychologist.
"It's been a blessing in a way, far beyond January 6. I know as a group, it’s made us more resolute, more compassionate, and stronger," Rep. Dean Phillips, D-Minn., said.
Phillips still has the gas mask he used one year ago.
"To bear witness," Phillips explained. "This is going to go with me wherever I end up as long as I am here in this job, on Earth, because this moment is seared into my memory and it’s my responsibility."
Lawmakers have said one of the most challenging aspects of their jobs following the riot is figuring out a way to work with some of their Republican colleagues who voted to overturn the presidential election results and downplay the violence and terror of that day.
"I’d say some of those colleagues of ours who want to pretend that it never happened. Here you had this incredibly vitriolic, traumatic experience and yet we serve with folks who want to pretend it was a tourist visit. And that's tough, that's a tough pill to swallow," Crow said.
The insurrection has only deepened the fraught partisan divides, eroding trust between members who were caught in the crosshairs of the violence.
Freshman Republican Troy Nehls came face to face with the mob and condemned the violent acts.
"The center doors started to shake violently … And then the glass shattered … I saw a young man and he was looking at me and I was looking at him and. And he said, 'You're from Texas, you should be with us,' … And I told him, this was un-American what you're doing,” Nehls told ABC News in an interview.
PHOTO: Pro-Trump protesters face a line of police officers after breaking through barriers onto the grounds of the Capitol Building, Jan. 6, 2021. Jon Cherry/Getty Images, FILE
Hours later, when lawmakers returned to the chamber to certify the election results, he was one of 147 Republicans who voted against it.
One year later, the feelings are still raw.
The pandemic, together with reverberations from the Capitol riot, have led more people on Capitol Hill to seek help.
In 2021, the Congressional Office of Employee Assistance handled 12,200 interactions with employees, managers, and members of the Hill - including 5,600 counseling sessions.
That's roughly four times the number of interactions the office handles in a given year, pre-pandemic.
The office has also conducted 40 trauma support briefings, according to a spokesman for the office.
PHOTO: A flash bang is fired at supporters of President Trump who stormed the United States Capitol building on Jan. 6, 2021. The Washington Post via Getty Images, FILE
Many who were on the Capitol that day are still shaken by the attack, struggling to cope with the trauma.
"I personally haven't gone through anything as traumatic as that – that has been my most traumatic experience," Leah Han, who works in House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office, told ABC News in an interview.
Leah Han, and her colleague Nathaniel Holmes, who also works in Pelosi’s office, were just steps from the House Chamber on Jan. 6 when the riot erupted.
"I never really dealt with anxiety before, but I now have anxiety," Holmes told ABC News.
"We started hearing people in the building. It was no longer just these chanting and shouts from outside. You could hear people in the hallways … It just seemed as if someone's capable of breaking in the Capitol building, what else are they capable of?" he said.
Pelosi staff members grabbed what they could and raced to the closest conference room, barricading themselves inside – no members of Pelosi’s security detail in sight.
Han said she struggles when imagining what could have happened had they not had a secure place to hide.
"I've thought about that a lot. What would they have done if they had found us? Were they going to kill us? Were they going to torture us? Were they going to rape me? I don't know. I just don't know. You were thinking about everything, all the possibilities. I mean, I couldn't help but try to prepare myself," Han said.
Han and Holmes said they starkly remember the mob pounding at the conference room door as rioters desperately searched for the speaker.
"Where are you, Nancy? Nancy, where are you? Oh, Nancy,” the rioters chanted as they rummaged through nearby offices.
Pelosi’s staff, including Holmes and Han, hid under a table inside the conference room where they were barricaded.
"I thought I was going to die. I mean, I just remember I kept thinking, 'This can't be happening. This can’t be happening to me,'" Holmes said.
Holmes said he still can’t "unhear" the sound of the rioters pounding on the door.
While the initial shock of the attack has worn off, an unanticipated grief remains that even time can’t seem to shake.
Yet, despite the trauma, they are resilient.
"I don’t think we can be the same. We are a collection, our building is a collection of all the things that happened to us, in us, and so … courage begets courage," Jayapal said.
"I don't know if I can ever be the same, but it doesn't necessarily have to always be defined by that," Holmes said. "I hope it's not defined by that … I don't know if it'll be the same, but hopefully it can be better."
**********************
For many Capitol Hill staffers, the trauma of Jan. 6 has never left: Toxic work environment affects not just members but their aides too
by Brad Korten
Rollcall.com
Posted January 6, 2022 at 6:00am
Let me first preface this by stating that I don’t speak for all congressional staffers. I am one of thousands of hard-working individuals who serve members of Congress and the Capitol daily. Yet I chose to write this piece to provide my perspective of how things have been in Congress one year after the Jan. 6 insurrection. In my over six years of working for Congress, nothing truly compares to the abnormality of this past year.
On Jan. 6th, 2021, I was working from my apartment in the Navy Yard neighborhood of Washington, approximately a mile away from the Capitol. Many congressional staffers were working from home due to the ongoing threat of COVID-19, but some were on the Hill to assist their bosses during the certification of the Electoral College vote. Four of my colleagues were in the office that day, as well as friends who worked for other members across the Capitol complex. As the violent mob attacked the Capitol, I watched on TV — in fear for my co-workers, my boss and my friends. I frankly didn’t know what to do and spent most of that afternoon calling and texting people to see if they were OK. I felt helpless to see the place where I work, the building that represents our nation’s democracy, invaded and destroyed by people spoon-fed lies by the outgoing president and his allies.
Jan. 6 was just the start of what became a very frustrating time to be a congressional staffer. Following the attack, the Capitol transformed from a freely accessible public building into a military base, as thousands of National Guard troops set up a perimeter and fortified the complex. At one point, there were more National Guard troops at the Capitol than soldiers in Afghanistan. These troops patrolled the grounds of the Capitol for the next four months. To me, the militarization of my workplace was heartbreaking to see. Before, constituents and advocates would walk the halls; now, it was armed troops.
Many of my friends and colleagues experienced trauma from that day, especially nonwhite staffers. Having a mostly white mob trying to “stop the steal” and “take their country back” was the accumulation of roughly five years of racist and toxic politics that came from the previous president’s actions. It was already hard for staffers of color to work on the Hill, but for many, this was the final straw. Over the following months, many left their jobs. People who pursued a path of public service wanting to serve their country and help make a difference were forced to leave due to an increasingly difficult working environment.
Even when the fences came down and the troops left, the insurrection still hovered over the Capitol. It wasn’t made easier knowing that some members of Congress continued to push the false conspiracy theories of the last presidential election, or even downplayed the seriousness of the attack itself. Dozens of people were seriously injured that day, and some were killed in the name of a lie. The mental scars are still felt by many who work here, made worse by some members’ hostile attacks on their fellow colleagues. The racist, xenophobic and hateful actions that have been reported this past year impacted not only the targeted members, but the staffers who work for them as well.
I remain hopeful that things can get better. I want to do my part to make a more positive environment for my fellow colleagues, but I fear that the toxicity that has plagued our workplace will only continue. I share my thoughts as one of many congressional staffers who do the work we do for the love of our country and for democracy.
Please consider that Congress is not just the elected members, but the staffers and others who don’t serve a political function but who work to ensure the smooth, everyday operation of our democracy. We will continue to do our jobs for the constituents we serve, but we too need support and a safe and healthy work environment.
Brad Korten is a senior policy adviser to a Democratic member of the House and has worked in Congress for the past six years.
****************************
Can images from Jan. 6 insurrection traumatize your child?
by Kristi King | kking@wtop.com
wtopnews.com
January 3, 2022, 9:10 AM
As the anniversary of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol arrives, some experts say children exposed to those events may react with what doctors call secondary trauma.
“If a child has experienced any type of trauma, or remembers the events of Jan. 6, either by witnessing them on TV or hearing about them consistently, there can be a reaction — or a secondary trauma that takes place,” said Dr. Asha Patton-Smith, a child and adolescent psychiatrist with Kaiser Permanente in Northern Virginia.
“As a parent, it’s important to be aware of that and to look for signs and symptoms of concern,” she said.
Trauma is a complicated condition to diagnose, but common symptoms can include anger, fear, guilt, anxiety, depression, issues with concentration and withdrawal from other people. Physical signs of trauma include muscle tension, headaches, chest pain and fatigue, not being able to sleep and nightmares.
“I think that, as we get closer to the event, there’ll be more talk about the event. And parents do need to check in with their kids to make sure they’re not being re-traumatized … or if these emotional events are triggering previous traumas in their life,” she said.
Last year after the insurrection, Patton-Smith said she observed frustration, anger, even confusion in some of her adolescent patients.
Something she says came up a lot with younger kids was fear: “Will this happen again? Will it be OK? Am I OK? Someone comes into my house, what’s going to happen?”
Patton-Smith said parents need to understand that a sense of safety is what is most important for children, because trauma robs that feeling of safety and makes people feel isolated.
Because children are like sponges, actively absorbing and trying to process what they see, Patton-Smith said parents may need to limit news and social media that could increase exposure to potentially disturbing content.
She also says it’s vital to talk to children about the things they are seeing.
“It really is important for a parent, if they’re talking about the events that happened on Jan. 6 — or any type of event — they talk about it very openly and in a non-biased, nonjudgmental way.”
She recommends parents instead ask younger children about their emotions and feelings.
“Not a judgment, not sharing as a parent what you feel, but just being very open and listening,” Patton-Smith said.
She says it’s also important to listen to older kids in a non-judgmental way, “so you can get a sense of where they are, which may be different from how you were looking at an event.”
Parents who have concerns about what their children may be experiencing shouldn’t hesitate to reach out for help.
“As always, talk to your child’s school counselor, any mental health professional at the school, obviously your child’s pediatrician or primary care provider and, if needed, a mental health professional,” Patton-Smith said.
For more advice on ways to deal with trauma and other mental health issues for kids, Patton-Smith recommends HealthyChildren.org, a parenting website sponsored by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
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Trump’s Favorite Part of Jan. 6 Is Laughing at the Trauma: The former president’s callousness toward his real and perceived enemies is standard fare for Trump, who frequently revels in their pain and misfortune in public and in private.
by Asawin Suebsaeng, Senior Political Reporter
Will Sommer, Politics Reporter
Updated Jan. 06, 2022 9:20AM ET / Published Jan. 06, 2022 4:57AM ET
There are a number of things that make Donald Trump happy when he thinks of Jan. 6, and the long-term consequences of the riot. But it’s the anguish and trauma that has really sparked his joy.
In the full year since the deadly, Trump-inspired assault on the U.S. Capitol, several lawmakers, police officers, and reporters who were there have publicly opened up about the lingering distress they still feel stemming from the anti-democratic violence and body count of the day.
According to three people with direct knowledge of the matter, the twice-impeached former president has noticed the emotional accounts, particularly that from Democratic congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Some he has found annoying. Others, however, have become targets of mockery and casual hilarity for him.
In several conversations with close allies over the past 12 months, Trump has repeatedly made fun of the idea that certain legislators, police, or journalists were traumatized by the violent events of the day, according to these sources. There are moments when the ex-president has speculated that his critics are “faking” their trauma and anxiety, for attention. Other times, he’s done poor, whining impersonations of perceived enemy lawmakers crying about the riot.
“I know your pain. I know you’re hurt,... We love you. You’re very special.”
-- President Donald Trump, Tweet, January 6, 2020
Trump’s callousness toward his real and perceived enemies, no matter the level of trauma inflicted, is standard fare for Trump: a man who built much of his political legacy and appeal by demagoguing and viciously smearing those who speak out against him. For example, despite his frequent claims about “backing the blue,” Trump privately referred to some of the police officers who were at the Capitol that day as “pussies, The Daily Beast previously reported.
He spent the past year hardening and broadening his lies about that day. Through press releases, rallies and interviews with allies, he’s excused and lionized the violent rioters, called for further election and voting-rights crackdowns across the nation, and in doing so cemented far-right Jan. 6 revisionism and “the Big Lie” as pillars of modern conservative orthodoxy.
And both in policy and in messaging, virtually every corner of the American right that matters has been willing to go along with it.
For a few hours after rioters stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6 last year, it looked like at least a segment of the Republican Party just might turn away from then-President Trump. A handful of Republicans in the Senate reversed their plans to vote against certifying Joe Biden’s win, though 147 Republican lawmakers in both chambers still voted against certification. Several top Trump officials, including two Cabinet secretaries, resigned from the administration in the wake of the riot.
“Yesterday was the worst day for the Republican Party since Lincoln’s assassination,” Joe Grogan, who had served as Trump’s top White House domestic policy adviser, told The Daily Beast the day after the attack in Washington, D.C. “It was a disgrace and a tragedy…[Trump] had plenty of opportunities to off-ramp before this.”
A year later, though, Trump’s hold on the party is almost as strong as it was when he was president. His social media access is gone, but Republican lawmakers still live in fear of Trump endorsing a primary challenger.
Reps. Adam Kinzinger (IL) and Liz Cheney (WY), the two Republican members of Congress most vocally opposed to Trump, are unlikely to have futures in the Trump-controlled party. Kinzinger announced his retirement in October, while Cheney faces a Trump-backed challenger in her primary.
And many of those who spoke out in the immediate aftermath have either reversed course, like House Minority Leader “My Kevin” McCarthy, or stopped talking about the events all together.
For instance, when asked about his feelings about the one-year anniversary of the riot, Grogan simply declined to comment further on the topic. His comments from a year ago became wildly out of step with where the mainstream GOP had landed right around the time President Biden was inaugurated.
If anything, with the passage of a calendar year, the Republican Party has only gotten more extreme. The Jan. 6 defendants have been recast in right-wing media as political prisoners. QAnon, the conspiracy theory that animated many of the rioters, has made new inroads into the GOP. In May, Allen West, then the head of the Texas Republican Party, joined Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX) at a QAnon conference in Dallas. Appearing at the same event, former three-star general and Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn endorsed the idea of a Myanmar-style coup taking place in the United States.
Right-wing media outlets have spent the past year laying the groundwork for a contradictory counter-narrative about Jan. 6. Their storyline at once portrays the riot as a nonviolent tourist march through the Capitol and a nefarious plot hatched by the FBI and left-wing antifascists to embarrass Trump that day by committing violence in his name. At Fox News, the center of the conservative media, primetime host Tucker Carlson steamrolled past internal objections to air a faux-documentary suggesting the riot was a false flag carried out by the forces of the “deep state.”
Furthermore, Republican consultants and longtime party strategists—many of whom claimed a sense of (short-lived) squeamishness on the day of the historic, bloody riot—feel emboldened by what they see as general disinterest from much of the public in the January 6 committee’s investigations, especially headed into the critical 2022 midterm elections.
Republicans’ post-riot efforts to minimize the violence and causes of the Jan. 6 attack has helped create a partisan divide over how it’s viewed. In a Washington Post-University of Maryland poll taken in mid-December, 92 percent of Democrats and 57 percent of independents polled said Trump deserved a significant amount of responsibility for the riot, while just 27 percent of Republicans felt the same. Republicans are also more willing to ignore the violence committed during the riot, with 26 percent of Republicans polled describing the rioters as “mostly violent,” in comparison to 78 percent of Democrats and 55 percent of independents who said the same.
Jan. 6 also didn’t inspire Republicans to ditch false claims about the 2020 election. Figures like MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell and Trumpist lawyer Sidney Powell have become stars among the party’s grassroots for carrying on the “Big Lie” even after the insurrection. Trump supporters flock to events around the country where Lindell, Powell, and their compatriots speak about their plans to overturn the election. Elected Republicans at the state level, meanwhile, have seized on false claims about Biden’s win to pass laws restricting voting and win over conservative activists by carrying out bogus ballot audits.
Over the past year, Trump has grown so emboldened by the undying support of conservative voters, right-wing media, and GOP heavy-hitters that he’s already started planning for a second term, whether he gets one or not.
Earlier this year, according to two people familiar with the situation, the former president began asking friends and golfing buddies who they thought he should choose for senior administration posts and cabinet positions, should he re-ascend to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave after the 2024 election.
Some of the potential choices that have floated around Trump’s brain are particularly Trump-y. One of the possible picks he asked some confidants about last year is former Fox Business star Lou Dobbs, another Trumpist dead-ender who has for years acted as a top informal adviser. The two sources said that Trump has pondered aloud putting “Lou” in his cabinet, should he get the opportunity.
Thanks to the Republican Party’s continued protection and promotion of Trump, and the party’s sustained efforts to whitewash Jan. 6, he might just get the chance.
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Rep. Pressley’s Statement on Anniversary of January 6th Insurrection
by Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley
January 6, 2022
“We must remain uncomfortable with what happened that day and the trauma it caused. We cannot grow complacent, and we must move with the urgency this moment demands.”
BOSTON, MA – Today, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07) issued the following statement on the anniversary of the January 6th insurrection.
“One year ago, the nation watched in absolute horror as a violent, white supremacist mob—incited by Donald Trump and Republican lawmakers’ hateful rhetoric and dangerous lies—attacked our seat of government. The attack was a blatant attempt to silence the will of the people, particularly the record number of Black and brown voters who made their voices heard in the 2020 election. Today, one thing remains painfully clear: white supremacy continues to threaten our democracy, our communities and everyone who calls America home.
“The January 6th insurrection was traumatic for everyone involved, from custodial and food service workers, journalists, Capitol police officers, to Congressional staff and members of Congress alike. As a Black woman in America—to experience the ancestral trauma of a violent white supremacist mob seizing the building, brandishing Confederate flags and erecting a noose on the capitol grounds was all too familiar—and tragically, the threat remains today. The same white supremacist threat fuels efforts by our Republican colleagues—many of whom supported and incited this attempted coup—to continue spewing lies and misinformation about the 2020 election results. It fuels the coordinated assault on our sacred right to vote. None of this is by happenstance.
“In this moment, we do not have the luxury of simply turning the page on this ugly and painful chapter in our nation’s history. To heal our collective trauma, to protect our communities, defend our democracy and ensure an attack like this never happens again, there must be accountability. I am grateful for the work done by Chairman Thompson and the January 6th Committee. The American people deserve to know exactly what happened that day and the Biden Administration must use the full weight of the presidency to investigate, prosecute and hold everyone involved accountable—including those in the previous Administration and sitting Members of Congress. And we must abolish the Jim Crow filibuster and pass meaningful voting rights legislation to protect our democracy and keep power in the hands of the people.
“Our work to root out white supremacy in all of its forms, safeguard our democracy, and protect the wellbeing of our communities is far from finished. We must remain uncomfortable with what happened that day and the trauma it caused. We cannot grow complacent and we must move with the urgency this moment demands.”
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Congressman Dan Kildee full interview discussing video captured during Capitol riot
Feb 11, 2021
WXYZ-TV Detroit | Channel 7
Michigan Congressman Dan Kildee (D-Flint), was one of many politicians trapped inside of the U.S. Capitol building during the insurrection on Jan. 6. He captured jarring video of the riot, which was used during the impeachment trial.
did you see that video when the vice
president was ushered out had you seen
that
no i hadn't seen any of the video that
came from the security cameras that was
actually the first time any of it was
shown
and uh to be candid
i watched a lot of the video coverage
right after the attack like
for the first couple of days after it
but
since then i've been avoiding it a
little bit only because
you know just to be honest and i think
it's good to be um you know i've i've
been dealing with a lot of post
traumatic stress as a result of all of
this
and just watching that video triggers a
lot of anxiety and i've got a lot of
work to do
and i'm working through that i'm you
know dealing with somebody a
professional
a mental health professional to help me
through it because
you know the experience that those of us
that were in the gallery had that
41 minutes that we were left behind
when it was clear that you know we were
pretty close to being in real danger
that um
that's a you know that's an experience
that is really hard to get through
you know what i i cannot tell you that i
understand what you went through that
day
but you know what at one time i was on a
flight
where they thought there was fire in the
engine and i literally thought we were
going down so i was
afraid that i was going to die yeah and
it took me
it took me literally four years before i
would even get on another plane so
you know it was so frightening not
really and i'm not saying this is
how you feel but um i was more concerned
about my kids being without me
you know and so many things go through
your mind i have no idea what was going
through your mind for 41 minutes i could
i could only
you know imagine yeah well it was a
similar thing i
was just you know when i was laying
there on the floor in the gallery
protecting myself from these
from this mob that clearly was intent
uh on killing us you know i i called my
wife
i asked her to call my mom
to make sure to let our kids know you
know that i was okay even though i knew
i wasn't
i wanted you know for some reason i
wanted to tell them look i'm all right
i'm safe i'm in a safe spot
even though that safe place was behind a
two-foot wall
separating me from this mob
that you know had clearly its intent
to get a hold of us and to kill as many
of us as they could
and in the greater likelihood is that
they would have succeeded
if it weren't for some very courageous
capital police officers who like most
police officers do the right thing
you know i i'm very critical of the
capitol police leadership
who have had all sorts of problems
regarding you know
race and culture and all sorts of issues
that i think
clearly had been uh a problem
but those capital police officers saved
my life and
i'll i talk to those folks every day and
i'll be forever grateful for them
i bet i bet um tell me this
congressman what what video did you take
were you able to pull out your own
phone and take a little bit of video
explain to me what you
what you have i did um i shot a couple
of
you know segments of video when i was
sheltering and it was this almost
instinctive thing
to capture this moment partly because
this was like two things going on at
once partly because i knew it was a
moment of history
that was important and it was important
to have an accurate record of it i want
to get that record but also
i didn't know you know what was going to
happen to me
and i wanted that video to be there
so the one little snippet of video that
i
that i captured that was used in the
trial
today includes the moment where the
capitol police officer
fired the shot that killed one of the
mob
in so my video captures
the sound of the gunshot and
a very candid reaction on my part
to that sound of that gunshot i used
language that my mom would probably not
approve of
maybe except in this instance
and it's also true that that moment
was a critical moment because if that
officer had not taken that courageous
action
uh that mob would have gotten in to the
gallery
into the to the uh house floor and
the fate of those of us that were
trapped there
uh would have been much worse than it is
wow so when that shot went
off what did the mob do at that point
could you tell
they backed up enough
such that a tactical unit then could
move in to support
the capitol police that are there it was
that tactical unit that was actually
able
to seal off a hallway a back hallway
behind
where um several members of congress and
i
were taking cover and it was through
that back hallway that they were able to
secure for about a minute
that we were able to escape wow i didn't
know that
i didn't know that wow yeah it was a
tough it was a tough
uh thing you know watching the trial
i mean i'm sort of in between committee
hearings and having the trial on so i
haven't been able to watch it as closely
as i'd like but
watching it uh even this evening um
i want to see it but i will tell you
it's not the easiest thing to watch
it brings up a lot of a lot of stress a
lot of anxiety
let me ask you a question so when you
escaped at what point were you and i i
don't know what you did but i would
imagine that
you were almost ready to break down in
tears but at what point did you feel
um that you could breathe a sigh of
relief at least that you knew you
wouldn't be killed
it was a it was a few hours because when
we
were able to escape we actually were
able to escape to an area
that the rest of the members of congress
had already gotten to
and it's a safe room that i can't
describe
because i don't want to uh explain where
it is it kind of
would defeat the purpose but there's a
there's some space that's there
that is able to be sealed off that i was
able to get to
that we stayed in for about four and a
half hours
it was after that
period when we were able to return to
the capitol
to finish the job then it kind of all
hit me
you know i think that's true of all of
us not just me but it kind of hit
us what was going on but
there was another wave of it and it's
because we were in the middle of all
this
we didn't see what was going on outside
i mean i was there
in the gallery in the chamber of the
house
preparing to lead the defense of the
michigan electoral vote
which was going to be challenged so i
wasn't paying i mean i was getting
you know text messages and updates on my
phone about the security
of the capital but we didn't have all
that images i wasn't watching the
television
and so in the in the hours that followed
the attack being able to actually see
what was going on
and then especially to be able to see
the mob that was on the other side of
the
door that our you know officers were
protecting us from
i had no idea how many people it was i
mean i i thought maybe
by the sound of it it was a few dozen
people there might have been a thousand
people
so the the the reaction that i had at
that point
was oh my god we were we were in
bad trouble much worse than i thought we
were
even when i was taking cover i knew i
was in trouble but i didn't know it was
that bad
until i saw the video so
you know i don't want to get real
political here however
when you think about this impeachment
trial and you think about
the big divide and you think about
especially after seeing that video play
today and
knowing that people were literally
within
58 steps of reaching
members of congress and yet some people
i don't know find it in their heart not
to convict or not to think that this
is an impeachable offense um what's your
reaction to that
it frightens me because it tells me the
extent to which
people are willing to go to ignore
the lessons of history because what we
saw this president
do president trump and those who have
enabled him is the same thing that we as
a nation have been fighting against in
other parts of the world for the entire
history of this country
this was an attempt to use mob rule
and thuggery and an authoritarian
approach to undo a democratic election
in order for somebody in power to remain
in power
we've been fighting against this for the
entire history of our country
and so it frightens me that there are
some people who are so
focused on their own interests their own
political interests their own
team and this is really not democrats
and republicans this is
trump and everyone else because a lot of
republicans feel the same way i do
the idea that they would be so obsessed
by their loyalty to
one dude as senator sass would stay
would say that ought to scare everyone
and it says to me that we have failed as
a country
in educating our population on the
basics of history
and of civics because anybody who has
studied either of those subjects would
see this for what it is
a really dangerous um a really dangerous
departure
from the principles that this country is
founded upon
so uh one last question or a couple of
last questions
um so i already know you don't
so you don't really feel safe yet
no not at all no because what the
what the president has unleashed
president trump of course
uh and continues to you know in in any
way he can to support it's this idea
that this election was stolen
which is just malarkey i mean anybody
who's studied any of this knows
that that's just a preposterous notion
but there are people out there who
believe it
and who believe that their obligation is
to attack
those who they think have taken
something from them
and so even though the initial attack is
over
the u.s capitol is still an armed camp
and
many of us have had to take pretty
significant security measures just to
protect ourselves
wherever we are and yeah this is
this is not good this is not good for
our country
uh so where do you i mean i don't know
like uh i'm trying to get i want you to
have the final word
um like is there any hope you know
for michigan residents listening to you
like is there a hopeful word that you
can give tonight
or yeah there's hope because
you know at the end of the day as
difficult as it was we prevailed
we finished the job that night it was
five in the morning when we finished
four o'clock in the morning i guess
when we actually certified the election
and even though it was less than a
majority of republicans
more than 70 republicans rejected
what the president then president trump
was trying to get them to do
and they voted to uphold the election
and in the senate it was an even bigger
number
what's frightening of course is that
there are still people who don't believe
that and see those people
as traitors now but i think if we want
to take some
some solace from all of this it's that
there were
republican members of congress
who had courage and were willing to
stand up for the constitution
and they deserve
you know more than more than i think
anyone they deserve
a real a real gratitude
uh from all of us you know and these are
people that i have big disagreements
with on other issues but when you get
right down to the most fundamental
question
are we going to uphold the constitution
um you know there were at least in our
case in michigan four of the michigan
republicans who stood up and did the
right thing
and i'll always be grateful to them for
that
and then one last thing i heard someone
say today it might have been a historian
who said it doesn't matter whether he's
convicted or not
you still have to take the steps you
still have to go through with this
impeachment trial for it to be on
record no matter what it's going to do
the job that is necessary
is that true i agree with that 100
um you know i think it will be a
political and historical question
that many people will have to answer as
to how they voted on this
but the verdict will be established by
the
by the american people and by the long
view
of history and what's happening right
now with this trial
is that the facts are being placed
essentially on the permanent record
so i was grateful as painful as it is
that some of what i said and did was
introduced into that record today
to be a part of the long-term record
of what took place that will be you know
part of american history and hopefully a
lesson for the future
absolutely anything else you want to add
no not really i mean just just that you
know
i do want to say how grateful i am to
all the people who've reached out
and especially how grateful i am to the
vast majority of the people in law
enforcement
uh like those capitol police officers
who despite poor leadership
did the right thing and defended us yeah
well we're so glad you're still here and
that you weren't hurt
and uh that you can fight on for
michigan as you
you've been doing and i i see your
interviews on cnn and everywhere else so
you represent us well so so i appreciate
your service too
well thank you i appreciate that yes you
have a nice night
all right you too
********************
Marjorie Taylor Greene And Boebert Heckling Biden Was ‘Disgusting’ Says Rep. Gomez
by Lawrence O'Donnell
Mar 2, 2022
California Democratic Rep. Jimmy Gomez, who has introduced a resolution to expel Marjorie Taylor Greene from Congress, joined MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell to discuss the heckling she and Rep. Lauren Boebert did during the State of the Union. Rep. Gomez also discusses the ‘triggering’ feeling he had returning to the House gallery for the first time since the January 6 attack on the Capitol.