Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) is placing some of the blame for the storming of the U.S. Capitol at President Donald Trump’s feet and urging him to call on his supporters to remain peaceful.
In a statement on Tuesday, Portman said, “Both in his words before the attack on the Capitol and in his actions afterward, President Trump bears some responsibility for what happened on January 6.”
“Today, I call on President Trump to address the nation and explicitly urge his supporters to remain peaceful and refrain from violence. If our nation experiences additional violence and destruction at the hands of his supporters in Washington DC and state capitols around the country, and he does not directly and unambiguously speak out now when threats are known, he will bear responsibility,” he continued.
Finally, he said, “Now is the time to work together to heal our country. My hope is that the tragic attack on the Capitol on January 6 can serve to unite us rather than divide us further. We need to come together to face enormous challenges, including the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, vaccine distribution, the worsening drug addiction epidemic, and the economic crisis caused by COVID-19.”
On January 6, hundreds of pro-Trump rioters breached the security of the Capitol and stormed the building, which brought a halt to Congressional proceedings. The incident left five people dead.
House Democrats have unveiled an article of impeachment against Trump and are accusing him of “incitement of insurrection,” as IJR reported.
Trump has reportedly accepted that he bears some responsibility for the storming of the Capitol. However, he also claimed that “Antifa people” were behind the riot.
Additionally, the president defended his speech at a rally shortly before protesters marched to the Capitol.
Speaking to reporters, Trump defended his speech, “If you read my speech, and many people have done it… it’s been analyzed… People thought that what I said was totally appropriate.”
