[ Across the country, protesters have rallied outside, as well as
inside, state capitol buildings over Trump’s false claims of voter
fraud. New session of Pennsylvania Senate got off to a chaotic start,
with GOP refusing to seat a Democratic senator.]
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THE INSURRECTION IS HAPPENING AT STATE CAPITOLS; PENNSYLVANIA GOP
PREVENTS SEATING OF ELECTED DEMOCRAT  
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Fabiola Cineas; Angela Couloumbis and Cynthia Fernandez
January 6, 2021

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_ Across the country, protesters have rallied outside, as well as
inside, state capitol buildings over Trump’s false claims of voter
fraud. New session of Pennsylvania Senate got off to a chaotic start,
with GOP refusing to seat a Democratic senator. _

Trump supporters gather outside the US Capitol building following a
Trump rally on January 6., Spencer Platt/Getty Images // Vox

 

The Insurrection is Happening at State Capitols - Fabiola Cineas (Vox)
Pennsylvania GOP Senators Refuse to Seat a Democrat and Remove Lt.
Gov. Fetterman from Presiding - Angela Couloumbis and Cynthia
Fernandez (The Philadelphia Inquirer)

 

THE INSURRECTION IS HAPPENING AT STATE CAPITOLS

Across the country, protesters have rallied outside, as well as
inside, state capitol buildings over Trump’s false claims of voter
fraud.

By Fabiola Cineas

January 6, 2021
Vox
[[link removed]]

A mob of President Donald Trump’s supporters stormed the US Capitol
[[link removed]] building
Wednesday afternoon, abruptly halting a session of Congress that was
supposed to certify President-elect Joe Biden’s win
[[link removed]].

Just hours after Trump encouraged the crowd at a rally
[[link removed]] to
“take our country back” and his lawyer Rudy Guiliani suggested
“trial by combat,” hundreds of people clad in Trump gear, some
carrying Confederate flags, climbed the steps of the building,
breached barricades, broke windows, and entered the halls of the
Capitol — an insurrection that threatened the lives of lawmakers
inside.

Two hours later, Trump posted a video to Twitter stating that while
the election was stolen, “you have to go home now. We have to have
peace. We have to have law and order. We have to respect our people in
law and order.”

But it was too late. Moments before Trump’s statement, one person
was shot and later died, according to DC Emergency Medical Services,
with at least five others being transported to the hospital. And
uprisings had already spread to other parts of the country.

Capitols across the country also saw rallies and violence

In conjunction with the Senate certification vote, protests were
planned in cities across the country on Wednesday, in which organizers
planned to “stop the steal” and contest the fact that Joe Biden
won the presidential election. Though many protests remained peaceful,
some turned odd, and others violent.

Arizona

Pro-Trump rioters in Arizona gathered by the hundreds to demonstrate
anger and deny the election results. They could be seen in videos
banging on the locked doors of the state capitol building in Phoenix.
The group struck on the window until the glass fractured.

Another group brought a guillotine to the gathering, which they
explained in a letter obtained by the Arizona Republic
[[link removed]].
The letter contained misinformation about the election outcome and
voter fraud and expressed their feelings toward a potential war:

“You may ask why we are here, why do we have a guillotine with us?
The answer is simple,” the document read. “For six weeks Americans
have written emails, gathered peacefully, made phone calls and begged
their elected officials to listen to their concerns. We have been
ignored, ridiculed, scorned, dismissed, lied to, laughed at and
essentially told, No Ones Cares.”

“Let it be known, if the Constitution, our way of life, and the
Freedoms that we hold so dear are threatened by internal or external
enemies, we will rise to the challenge and defend this great nation by
all means necessary. While we pray for Peace, but we do not fear
war.”

California

In Sacramento, Trump supporters, including right-wing militia group
[[link removed]] the
Three Percenters and the far-right street-fighting group
[[link removed]] the
Proud Boys, confronted counterprotesters. Groups rallied around the
state capitol giving speeches that denied the results of the
presidential election and cursed Gov. Gavin Newsom’s coronavirus
rules. The Sacramento police announced on Twitter that they arrested
individuals carrying pepper spray.

Colorado

Denver officials closed offices early
[[link removed]] as
a precaution, and state police suited up in riot gear.

Florida

In Florida, about 150 Trump supporters, including dozens of Proud
Boys, rallied outside the state’s capitol in support of the “Stop
the Steal” movement. One publication
[[link removed]] described
the gathering as tame, with protesters praying together as early as 8
am. By afternoon, the large crowd broke off into smaller groups.

Georgia

Just a day after Georgia held its runoff elections
[[link removed]] —
with Democrats winning control of the Senate — senior staffers,
including Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, were escorted
out of the state capitol building as a group of demonstrators rallied
outside. Tensions rose after the insurrection in DC unfolded.

Kansas

Demonstrators moved into the Kansas Statehouse on Wednesday afternoon
after hundreds of people demonstrated outside the building earlier in
the day. According to local news outlets WBIW
[[link removed]] and KSNT
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protesters had permits and followed protocols as they contested the
count of electoral votes in Washington, DC.

MINNESOTA

More than 500 Trump supporters in St. Paul cheered when they learned
that a mob had breached the US Capitol on Wednesday. According to
the Star Tribune
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some in the group dressed in Colonial-era costumes and spoke about
being ready for battle as they rallied for about four hours. State
troopers guarded the state capitol and Gov. Tim Walz’s residence
where the pro-Tump supporters landed. Among the group were Three
Percenters, members of the Boogaloo Boys, and local Republican
lawmakers who emboldened the Trump supporters.

NEW MEXICO

Officials evacuated the Roundhouse in Santa Fe on Wednesday afternoon
as an estimated 500 Trump supporters gathered outside of the building
and terror escalated in Washington, DC. According to a local report,
supporters arrived by car, truck, and horseback to fight the Electoral
College ballot count. Participants placed signs
[[link removed]] around
the Roundhouse that read “End the Lockdown” and “We want honest
elections.”

New York

Outside the New York Capitol in Albany, where Gov. Cuomo was
delivering an address about his coronavirus plan, two people were
taken to the hospital and one person was taken into custody in
connection with a stabbing. Law enforcement told reporters
[[link removed]] that
the violence stemmed from a protest that was underway just outside the
state capitol.

OHIO

At the statehouse, members of the Proud Boys and other Trump
supporters clashed with Blacks Lives Matter supporters early in the
afternoon. Video captured by the Columbus Dispatch
[[link removed]] showed
a white man punching a Black man amid an altercation near the
statehouse. Other videos show
[[link removed]] larger
clashes involving dozens of participants, with police officers and
Ohio Highway Patrol trying to deescalate the violence.

Oregon

In Oregon — where unrest continued for months in 2020 after the
police killing of George Floyd, and federal agents abducted
protesters
[[link removed]] in
unmarked vehicles and counterprotesters escalated tensions —
officials made the decision to close the capitol building to public
and staff all day Wednesday. In the afternoon, hundreds of Trump
supporters marched around the capitol in Salem to contest the election
and dispute the state’s coronavirus regulations. The crowd even
burned an effigy of Gov. Kate Brown, according to Oregon Live
[[link removed]].
Just two weeks ago, about 50 people, including Patriot Prayer members,
reportedly pepper-sprayed a line of officers and broke into
Oregon’s capitol
[[link removed]] in
protest over coronavirus restrictions.

Texas

At the Texas Capitol, hundreds of pro-Trump demonstrators gathered as
the insurrection broke out in Washington. Officials were quick to shut
down the building and surrounding complex to “maintain public order
and address public threats,” according to the state’s department
of public safety
[[link removed]].

UTAH

“Stop the Steal” proponents joined together at the Utah Capitol
(all officials were evacuated in the afternoon), carrying thin blue
line flags
[[link removed]] and
signs that read “Election fraud is treason.” Though the gathering
of hundreds remained mostly peaceful, according to the Associated
Press
[[link removed]],
there were some clashes. A Trump supporter pepper-sprayed a Salt Lake
City Tribune photographer. In response, the city’s mayor tweeted
[[link removed]], “An
assault on a journalist is an attack on freedom of press and
democracy. This is unacceptable, and should not be allowed to go
unchecked.”

According to the Salt Lake Tribune
[[link removed]],
the crowd of about 300 chanted “USA! USA! USA!” and “Recall
Romney.” In the evening, Sen. Romney made his thoughts clear in
a statement
[[link removed]]:

What happened here was an insurrection, incited by the President of
the United States. Those who choose to continue to support his
dangerous gambit by objecting to the results of a legitimate,
democratic election will forever be seen as being complicit in an
unprecedented attack against our democracy.

Washington

At least three rallies were planned in Olympia, Washington, where
rallygoers protested the election results. At the capitol building,
Patriot Prayer members made speeches about the need to “speak
truth” and carried flags that read “Trump is our President.”
When one participant announced that the US Capitol had been breached,
people cheered and he claimed “It’s war now!” according to the
Olympian
[[link removed]].
Dozens of people made their way to Gov. Inslee’s mansion, where
they breached the gates
[[link removed]]. They
were unable to enter the home.

rhetoric about the election. In Pennsylvania, rallies to stop the
certification of the 2020 election largely took place on Monday. In
Idaho, a rally run by an organization called MAGA Girl brought forward
speakers who spewed false claims about the election, according to
the Idaho Press
[[link removed]],
though it was relatively calm. In Baton Rouge, Louisiana,
organizers gathered on the Capitol’s steps
[[link removed]],
flew “Don’t Tread on Me” and “Keep America Great” flags, and
criticized Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, who called on Trump
to condemn
[[link removed]] the
violence on Wednesday. Speakers at a rally in Oklahoma City disputed
the results of the election and called Biden an illegitimate
president; some attendees carried guns and wore body armor. In
Michigan, an estimated 700 to 800 people, many without masks, kept
their rally
[[link removed]] outside
of the capitol building in Lansing, with some delivering speeches
about how they doubted Michigan’s vote count.

 

PENNSYLVANIA GOP SENATORS REFUSE TO SEAT A DEMOCRAT AND REMOVE LT.
GOV. FETTERMAN FROM PRESIDING

by Angela Couloumbis and Cynthia Fernandez

January 5, 2021
The Philadelphia Inquirer
[[link removed]]

 

President Donald Trump supporters gather on the statehouse steps as
the Pennsylvania House of Representatives are sworn in.
Laurence Kesterson/Associated Press  //  Boston Globe
HARRISBURG — The new session of the Pennsylvania Senate got off to a
chaotic start Tuesday, with Republicans refusing to seat a Democratic
senator whose election victory has been certified by state officials.

Amid high emotions and partisan finger-pointing, Republicans also took
the rare step of removing the Democratic lieutenant governor, John
Fetterman, from presiding over the session. They apparently did so
because they did not believe Fetterman was following the rules and
recognizing their legislative motions.

Democrats, in turn, responded by refusing to back Sen. Jake Corman
(R., Centre) from assuming the chamber’s top leadership position —
an unusual maneuver on what is most often a largely ceremonial and
bipartisan vote.

The bitterness and rancor on display were a departure from the
normally staid and sedate workings of the chamber. And it potentially
sets the stage for a tumultuous two-year session, which will include
debate over key legislative priorities such as redistricting.

“With this reckless, out-of-control, cowboy-like behavior, with this
Trumpian behavior that we saw today from Republicans … this does not
bode well. It does not bode well for the people of Pennsylvania,”
said Sen. Vince Hughes of Philadelphia, the ranking Democrat on the
Senate Appropriations Committee.

For now, at least, Democratic State Sen. Jim Brewster, of Allegheny
County, will not be allowed to take the oath of office,
as Republicans believe litigation over the outcome in his race must
first play out in federal court
[[link removed]].
GOP leaders have said the state constitution gives senators the
authority to refuse to seat a member if they believe the person does
not meet the qualifications to hold office.

Brewster narrowly won reelection over Republican challenger Nicole
Ziccarelli, who is asking a federal judge to throw out the election
results. At the center of that legal dispute are several hundred mail
ballots that lacked a handwritten date on an outer envelope, as
required by state law. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court allowed those
ballots to be counted, which gave Brewster the edge in the race.
 

Lt. Gov. John Fetterman (center) confers with Senate Secretary Megan
Martin (right), as Sen. Jake Corman (front, center), takes over the
session to conduct a vote to remove Fetterman from residing over the
session in Harrisburg on Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2021. Bobby Maggio,
Fetterman’s chief of staff, stands to the left.
The Philadelphia Inquirer
Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa (D., Allegheny), along with Sen.
Anthony Williams (D., Philadelphia), delivered stinging rebukes to
Republican colleagues for refusing to acknowledge Brewster’s win.
Costa has said he believes the maneuver was out of “the Trump
playbook” of nakedly partisan maneuvers and refusing to accept valid
election outcomes.

Costa also had tough words for Corman as he urged his colleagues to
vote against the senator.

“The president pro tempore is to be a leader for the entire body —
not of one party,” Costa said. “Nowhere in the constitution does
it say that the leader should be beholden to the partisan whims of his
own party.”

The state’s top Democrat, Gov. Tom Wolf, called the Senate’s
refusal to seat Brewster, whose reelection was certified by the state,
“simply unethical and undemocratic.”

“Republicans in Pennsylvania and nationally have spread
disinformation and used it to subvert the democratic process,” the
governor said in a statement.

For his part, Corman appeared unruffled. Addressing the chamber, he
called his new role “the honor of a lifetime,” and said he would
work as a leader not just of Republicans — as he did in his previous
role as the GOP’s majority leader — but the entire Senate.

He also pledged transparency and good-government reforms.

“We are here today and every day to serve the public,” Corman
said. “And I’ve always been a big believer that things that unite
us are far stronger than things that divide us.”

As the session opened Tuesday, Democrats attempted several legislative
actions to force the GOP to swear in Brewster. But as the minutes
ticked by, tempers flared and several senators began to shout across
the aisle as the two sides locked horns and Fetterman presided.

Within an hour, Republicans had voted to remove Fetterman from his
spot at the rostrum at the front of the chamber after he failed to
recognize a GOP motion to prevent Brewster from being seated.

For several chaotic minutes, there appeared to be two people presiding
over parallel sessions, as Fetterman refused to leave the chamber.

In an interview Tuesday afternoon, Fetterman said he was disappointed
that what should have been a day of pictures and smiles as senators
were sworn into office devolved into bitterness.

But, he said, he had a conversation with Corman before the session in
which he was unequivocal about his belief that the chamber should seat
Brewster, just as every other senator whose election had been
certified.

“He has the identical credentials that everyone else who was sworn
in had today,” Fetterman said, adding that what unfolded on the
Senate floor “subverted the democratic will of voters.”

The fracas overshadowed a moment of history in the chamber, with
Republican Sen. Kim Ward of Westmoreland County becoming the first
female majority leader
[[link removed]].

Meanwhile, across a hallway in the Capitol, the mood was much calmer
in the House of Representatives. There, members elected Rep. Bryan
Cutler (R., Lancaster) as speaker.

“I hope that as we begin this new legislative term that you will
always remember that the most important people here in this
commonwealth are not the ones that occupy the seats in this beautiful
chamber. And to be clear, they’re not in the Senate either,”
Cutler said. “It’s all of our citizens back home. Let us never
forget that in a republican form of government, the sovereign is
always the citizens of the commonwealth.”

_[SPOTLIGHT PA [[link removed]] is an independent,
nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in
partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh
Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free
newsletters [[link removed]]..]_

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