The attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6th came after months of planning

Militia groups planned to riot at the Capitol weeks before January 6th. They bought weapons and stockpiled ammunition.

Check out the full timeline of events on January 6th.

The rioters’ goal was to stop the certification of the 2020 presidential election and overturn the will of the people. They got close – 40 feet away from Vice President Mike Pence.

More details are coming to light as the House January 6th Committee continues to investigate.

The attack on the Capitol on Jan 6 was an organized, coordinated attempt to flood the building with people and shut down the process of certifying the electoral votes. Planning for the Capitol riots began long before January 6th, 2021.

President Donald Trump’s Stop the Steal Rally was seeded with members of organized extremist groups (e.g. Proud Boys, Three Percenters, Oath Keepers, “Groypers” from America First) who intentionally planned to transform a peaceful rally into chaos. These groups attempted to manipulate Trump supporters into joining them in attacking the Capitol through disinformation ahead of January 6th. Some people came to the Stop the Steal Rally prepared for violence, wearing helmets, tactical vests, and radios.

What happened on January 6th 2021?

On January 6th, 2021, a mob attack attempted to shut down the certification of electoral votes at the United States Capitol Building.

After President Donald Trump concluded his speech casting doubt on the integrity of the 2020 election and asking supporters to “walk down to the Capitol” and “take back our country”, a large group began marching towards the Capitol Building. The protesters quickly became violent.

At 1pm, rioters ran towards Capitol, toppling barricades and charging police before ultimately surging into the interior of the Capitol Building. There were not enough Capitol police to stop the surge of people without using deadly force. Some officers let some protesters in in hopes of de-escalating the situation. The protesters only became more violent, assaulting American police officers.

Meanwhile, Congress people were busy certifying the results of the 2020 election at the time of the attack and were quickly put on lockdown where they remained for 5 hours hiding under chairs in the official chambers. Republican leaders quickly tweeted telling the rioters to stop their attack on democracy. The attack delayed proceedings as Congressmen and women remained in strict lockdown until 8pm when Capitol Police took back the building.

Who did it?

Though most of the mob who had gathered at the nearby Stop the Steal rally that day were not planning on rioting, the group was seeded with members of organized domestic terrorist groups like the Proud Boys. These people were equipped with tactical gear, had prepared to launch an attack on the Capitol, and instigated others to join them in attacking the Capitol after hearing President Trump’s speech. These groups have since admitted that they had planned their attack. Though speculated, Antifa has not been proven to have been at the attack and no video evidence suggests they were.

Did anyone get in trouble?

As a result of the attack, many rioters lost everything. Many were found by FBI detectives and others were doxxed by the general population and reported. When identified, the protestors were charged to the full extent of the law. Our government is sending a message that attacks on our elections will not be tolerated.

Capitol Police Were on the Front Line of January 6 Riot

During the riot and attack on the Capitol on January 6th, 140 police officers were injured and 5 gave their lives.

Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick died of a stroke from injuries sustained during the riot.