Northam sends Va. National Guard, state troopers to D.C. as Trump supporters attack Capitol

Gov. Ralph Northam sent Virginia National Guard personnel and state troopers to help restore order in D.C. Wednesday after a mob of supporters of President Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol. One person was reported fatally shot. 

.@GovernorVA has approved Virginia National Guard support to law enforcement to Washington, D.C. For operational security reasons, we will not release details on the number of personnel, staging locations or timelines.

— Va. National Guard (@VaNationalGuard) January 6, 2021

The governor said he would be sending National Guard resources and 200 Virginia state troopers to assist with the situation, adding that his administration is “working closely” with D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and Democratic congressional leaders.

My team and I are working closely with @MayorBowser, @SpeakerPelosi, and @SenSchumer to respond to the situation in Washington, D.C.

Per the Mayor’s request, I am sending members of the Virginia National Guard along with 200 Virginia State Troopers.

— Ralph Northam (@GovernorVA) January 6, 2021

Federal lawmakers were sent scrambling for safety Wednesday afternoon after Trump supporters overwhelmed police and broke into the Capitol building, halting the certification of President-elect Joe Biden’s election victory.

All four Virginia Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives had lent support to longshot efforts to challenge the election results, saying they intended to formally oppose some of the Electoral College results that cemented Biden’s win. After the Capitol was breached, some of them pleaded for calm.

The Capitol is the place where Americans debate issues peacefully and according to our rules and Constitution. It should not be subject to break-ins and violence. Its occupiers must leave and face justice, and the business of the people must continue.

— Morgan Griffith (@RepMGriffith) January 6, 2021

This is absolutely unacceptable. This is not how we conduct the Nation’s business. Please allow us to get the work of the people completed.

— Rep. Rob Wittman (@RobWittman) January 6, 2021

While people have a right to peaceably protest, those who breached the Capitol and assaulted Capitol Police officers should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Violence is never the answer, and I condemn their actions in the strongest possible terms.

— Congressman Ben Cline (@RepBenCline) January 6, 2021

Every American has a precious constitutional right to protest.
Violence is never the answer. I am calling on everyone, especially Virginians and #VA05 to please protest peacefully.
We are thankful for Capitol Police who are courageously doing their jobs to keep everyone safe.

— Congressman Bob Good (@RepBobGood) January 6, 2021

State Sen. Amanda Chase, R-Chesterfield, who is seeking the Republican nomination for governor in 2021, had travelled to Washington for the rally, apparently addressing a crowd at one point Wednesday morning.

In the afternoon, she posted a video to Facebook from the inside of a car letting her supporters know she was safe and heading back to the Richmond area.

“Everything that I saw earlier today was very peaceful,” she said.

She also said she was “very disappointed” Vice President Mike Pence had not tried to block certification of Biden’s electors and repeated her unfounded claims that the election was “stolen” from Trump.

Former Virginia House Speaker Kirk Cox, R-Colonial Heights, who is competing with Chase for the GOP gubernatorial nomination, issued a more forceful statement denouncing the violent protest.

“The peaceful transfer of power is a hallmark of our republic, key to the ongoing and sustainable success of a representative government,” Cox said. “The reality is that Joe Biden is set to become the next president of the United States under our Constitution. The lawless actions taken today are an affront to that process and, therefore, an affront to the republic.”

Virginia Democrats denounced the events Wednesday as a shameful day in American history.

“I’m a former intelligence officer,” Rep. Abigail Spanberger, D-Henrico, said in an interview with NBC News. “My whole background is understanding the challenges that foreign governments are facing. The scene that we saw on Capitol Hill – the banging, the yelling, the screaming, the demands to enter the chambers of the United States Congress – those are the sorts of things that happen in third-world nations. The sorts of places where our diplomats and intelligence officers write home to the United States and say this is a dangerous scenario, this is an endangered democracy.”

Other House Democrats, including Virginians, urged swift retribution for Trump in the form of a new impeachment.

A House office building was evacuated and the Capitol and surrounding office buildings were locked down after the pro-Trump rioters protesting the election results pushed past barricades and made it to the hallways outside the House and Senate chambers. Some were carrying Trump flags, video posted on Twitter showed.

According to pool reports, Vice President Mike Pence was rushed out of the Senate chamber, where he had been presiding over the certification. Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley also was escorted out with Pence.

As they rushed away, Senate parliamentary staff grabbed hold of the boxes containing the Electoral College certificates.

Lawmakers were also evacuated from the House, according to pool reports.

Another pool report said: “There’s an armed standoff at the house front the door police officers have their guns drawn at someone who is trying to reach the front door.”

Trump at a rally had encouraged demonstrators to march on the Capitol. He then promised to march with them to the Capitol, but returned to the White House.

The violent demonstration unfolded as lawmakers had gathered to tally the Electoral College votes, the final step in formalizing Joe Biden’s presidential win.

Dozens of Republicans were expected to file a series of objections to Biden’s votes from a handful of swing states, alleging fraud claims that have failed in lawsuits brought by the legal team of Trump, who has refused to concede.

The House and Senate convened briefly to begin tallying votes, and the first objection was filed to Arizona’s 11 electoral votes. The two chambers began debate over that objection, which was raised by U.S. Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) and 60 colleagues, including Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas).

That debate was upended as the protesters approached the building. As Capitol Police closed the doors to lock down the House floor, Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.) shouted to Republicans, “This is because of you,” according to pool reports.

District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser ordered a 6 p.m. citywide curfew until 6 a.m. Thursday.

In a speech, President-elect Joe Biden called it “an assault on the most sacred of American undertakings.”

“This is not dissent. It’s disorder, it’s chaos. It borders on sedition and it must end now,” Biden said, calling on the “mob to pull back and let the work of democracy to go forward.”

In his own video, Trump repeated lies about election fraud and called for “peace.”

You are a complete disgrace to the Office of the President. https://t.co/YKE6tnD2s3

— Elaine Luria (@ElaineLuriaVA) January 6, 2021

“We don’t want anybody hurt,” he said. “So go home, we love you. You’re very special.”

Virginia Congresswoman Elaine Luria, D-Norfolk, called him a “complete disgrace.”

States Newsroom D.C. Bureau reporters Laura Olson and Ariana Figueroa contributed to this report.