Page:Trial Memorandum of the United States House of Representatives in the Second Impeachment Trial of President Donald John Trump.pdf/33

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as you had rioters pushing against Capitol Police trying to get into the building.”[1] These feelings were reflected in President Trump’s actions (and inactions) over the following hours, which reveal an extraordinary, unprecedented repudiation of the President’s duties to protect the government.

At 1:49 PM, after insurrectionists had overcome the Capitol perimeter—and after reports of pipe bombs had been confirmed—President Trump retweeted a video of his speech at the rally, which included his message that “Our country has had enough, we will not take it anymore, and that’s what this is all about. … You have to be strong.”[2] Just over thirty minutes later, at 2:24 PM, while rioters were still attacking police and after Vice President Pence had been evacuated from the Senate floor, President Trump again tweeted to excoriate the Vice President for refusing to obstruct the Joint Session: “Mike Pence didn’t have the courage to do what should have been done to protect our Country and our Constitution.”[3] President Trump thus singled out Vice President Pence for direct criticism at the very same time the Vice President and his family were hiding from a violent mob provoked by President Trump. As one rioter explained, the mob “went crazy” after learning that “Pence turned on us and that they had stolen the election.”[4]

As the assault continued, President Trump continued his efforts to prevent the Joint Session from affirming the election results. After Senators had been evacuated from the Senate Chamber, President Trump called Senator Mike Lee—apparently trying to reach Senator Tommy Tuberville—not to check on his safety, or assess the security threat, but to try to persuade him to delay and


  1. ↑ Andrew Prokop, Republican Senator: White House Aides Say Trump Was “Delighted” as Capitol Was Stormed, Vox (Jan. 8, 2021).
  2. ↑ Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump), Twitter (Jan. 6, 2021, 1:49:54 PM).
  3. ↑ Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump), Twitter (Jan. 6, 2021, 2:24 PM).
  4. ↑ Ashley Parker et al., How the Rioters Who Stormed the Capitol Came Dangerously Close to Pence, Wash. Post (Jan. 15, 2021).
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