'Civil war' on Capitol Hill
(Baonghean.vn) - On the afternoon of January 6 (US time), hundreds of protesters supporting outgoing US President Donald Trump flocked to Capitol Hill in an attempt to turn the tables against Mr. Trump. As a result, they "successfully" delayed the confirmation of Mr. Joe Biden's victory for a few more hours, but paid a heavy price in unnecessary casualties in clashes with the police, and an indelible stain on the history of democracy in the land of the stars and stripes.
The Shame of American Democracy
A scene that seemed like it could only be seen in movies appeared in real life in Washington DC on the afternoon of January 6, when Capitol Hill - considered a symbol of American democracy - was attacked by a crowd of protesters supporting Mr. Trump.sweep, vandalize.
According to the AP news agency, none other than the outgoing President himself had called out and urged this group of people to march around the dome building, where lawmakers were carrying out their constitutional duties, meeting to count the Electoral College votes, confirming the winner of the recent much-discussed election. The meeting had just taken place for a short while before it was quickly suspended, and the participants had to be "evacuated" because the harassers smashed glass doors, rushed into the hallways and rummaged through the desks of the congressmen.
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| Pro-Trump protesters clash with security forces protecting the US Capitol building. Photo: AP |
With just 14 days to go before Joe Biden’s inauguration at this very location, elected officials sought refuge in their own offices. Secret Service agents barricaded themselves in congressional chambers, guns in hand. The Stars and Stripes flag that usually flies over public buildings was taken down by protesters, then replaced by Trump’s blue flag.
“This is not dissent, this is disorder, this is chaos.”
Not only that, the image that is hard to erase from the minds of many Americans, as well as attracting international attention, is when an intruder in the building, wearing a hooded sweatshirt, swaggered into the central seat overlooking the entire Senate, where just a few minutes before was the seat of Vice President Mike Pence. Obviously, that situation cannot be placed next to the phrase "transfer of power“Peace” has always been a tradition in the United States. Even Republican Senator Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania exclaimed: “This is an absolute disgrace.”
Even the US media said that their country on Wednesday seemed to be facing the risk of becoming the kind of country they often claim they are supporting, that is, a “fragile democracy”! As for Mr. Joe Biden - who later in the early morning of January 7 (US time) wasThe US Congress officially recognizedis the constitutional President - in a televised speech stated his opinion on the riots: "This is not dissent, but disorder, these are incidents of chaos".
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| Protesters broke into and sat in the chair of the Senate chamber. Photo: Huffington Post |
“To those who vandalized the Capitol today – you did not win.”
Hours after the rioters stormed the Capitol, security forces brought the situation under control and the chambers returned to work, debating until early Thursday morning. After the unfortunate incident, the objections to Mr. Biden’s victory in battleground states from pro-Trump lawmakers were met with overwhelming rejection, even from most Republicans. Vice President Pence presided, speaking before the resumption: “To those who vandalized the Capitol today—you did not win,” and received a thunderous applause from the delegates in attendance.
The world is shocked and urges peaceful transition.
As the shock of what happened at the Capitol wore off, leaders around the world expressed shock at the violence.Trump supporters, at the same time, many opinions called for a peaceful transfer of power to avoid recurrence of violence.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is “saddened” by the events at the US Capitol. “In such circumstances, it is important that political leaders stress to their supporters the need to refrain from violence and respect democratic processes and the rule of law,” said a statement issued by his spokesman.
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| Washington DC National Guard outside Capitol Hill on January 6. Photo: AP |
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg called the violent protests in Washington “shocking scenes” and said the results of the US democratic election must be respected. European Union leaders’ group chairman Charles Michel also took to Twitter to express his shock at the scenes in Washington: “The US Congress is a symbol of democracy… We trust the US will ensure a peaceful transfer of power to Joe Biden.”
Sharing the same view, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stated: “I believe in the strength of American institutions and democracy. The peaceful transfer of power is essential. Joe Biden has won the election. I look forward to working with him as the next President of the United States.”
“What happened today in Washington DC is definitely not American.”
Meanwhile, Washington's allies could not remain silent about the unexpected developments. French President Emmanuel Macron, in a video posted on his Twitter account, affirmed: "What happened today in Washington DC is definitely not an American thing. We believe in the strength of our democracies. We believe in the strength of American democracy." Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson bluntly called the events in the US Congress a "disgrace", saying that the US represents democracies in the world, so the "vital" thing now is to ensure an orderly transfer of power.
For its part, Germany believes that the enemies of democracy will celebrate the recent violent scenes in the US. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said that the violence at the Capitol was sparked by provocative rhetoric, and called on Mr. Trump and his supporters to accept the decision of American voters. Furthermore, while the White House warns the US to be cautious because it seems that images of the protests in Ukraine that led to the overthrow of President Viktor Yanukovich in 2014 are being recreated in Washington DC, Spain hopes that the new President Biden will unite the American people to overcome this tense period...
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| The US Congress meets to count the Electoral College votes for president on January 6. Photo: AFP |
It can be said that although the situation is temporarily under control, and there have been positive signs towards stability such as the US Congress confirming Mr. Biden's constitutional status as the 46th president, and Mr. Trump has also officially promised to ensure a smooth transition of power, but perhaps from now until January 20, and even after that, American and world public opinion will follow the situation in the land of the stars and stripes every minute and second.
The majority will be waiting for peace to return to one of the world's greatest symbols of democracy, for the blood to stop and for life to resume its rhythm as before, so that the scenario of America being placed next to phrases like "banana republic" (referring to politically unstable countries) or worse "like a third world country", a place that nurtures "blood-soaked" civil wars will only be able to appear on the big screen.
