Friend --

Do you remember where you were – and how you felt – one year ago today, when you first heard about the violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol? It's a day I'll never forget.

I was in the House Chamber, working to certify the 2020 presidential election results. We started and stopped several times as the threat of the mob outside waxed and waned.

Rioters and insurrectionists had already assaulted police officers, sprayed them with chemicals, tased them, and tried to wrestle their firearms away. I remember the growing sound of their shouts as Capitol Police barricaded the doors of the House Chamber and drew their guns. "Take your pins off," one of my colleagues urged, referring to the Congressional lapel pins we wear as members of Congress, so that the mob might not recognize us.

I and my fellow members of Congress – from both parties – began to fear for our lives, and for good reason. The insurrectionists storming the Capitol that day were prepared to do whatever it took to stop us from doing our constitutional duty. I started to believe being held hostage was the likely outcome.

With the mob's advances finally halted, however, we stayed at the Capitol. And we finished the people's business.

I will forever be grateful to the members of law enforcement, especially the Capitol Police, and the National Guard for their efforts that day to preserve our democracy.

Most Republicans – including party leaders – condemned the attack and the former president's role in it in the immediate aftermath. But in the months since, many have succumbed to the pressure of the most extreme among them, and they've changed their tune. Virtually every elected Republican now espouses Trump's Big Lie about election fraud – and those who've had the courage to tell the truth are being forced out of their party, despite their conservative credentials.

This is wrong. It is un-American. And it is dangerous.

Looking back on those events one year later, I am as committed to preserving our democracy for future generations as I was then. So are my Democratic colleagues. So, I think, are you.

We're living through a time where anything can happen – pandemics and insurrections, but also record-setting voter turnout. Honest conversations about race. Life-saving vaccines against deadly viruses made in record time. And investments in American infrastructure bigger than we've seen in a generation.

There are reasons for optimism, if you know where to look (and believe me, it's not on TV).

As we begin this new year, let's renew our faith in what America can accomplish when we foster hope over fear, and when we work to unite rather than to divide. It's the only way forward.

Thanks for sticking with me,

Dean

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