“At this hour, our democracy is under unprecedented assault, unlike anything we’ve seen in modern times,” Joe Biden said today as Donald Trump’s supporters swarmed the Capitol to halt the certification of the electoral college vote.
“Let me be very clear, the scenes of chaos at the Capitol do not reflect the true America,” the President-elect passionately added in a live address from Wilmington, Delaware covered by all the mainstream cabler newsers and broadcasters.
“This is not dissent, its disorder, it’s chaos and it borders on sedition and it must end now,” the self-described “shocked and saddened,” Biden said of what he called a “dark moment” in the nation’ history.
Slamming those who are only interested in “the pursuit of power or personal interest,” Biden called on the former Celebrity Apprentice host to “go on national television now, to fulfill his oath and defend the Constitution and demand an end to this siege.”
“President Trump, step up.”
As Biden was speaking, Trump actually put a staged video up on social media complaining again about the “fraudulent election” and telling his “very special” followers to “go home and go home in peace.” The incumbent said nothing about the bloody outcome in Congress.
Pulling political reality further, it’s officially called the second Georgia runoff race for Jon Ossoff. Stripping the GOP of their majority, that leaves the Senate now tied at 50-50, with incoming Vice President Kamala Harris the deciding vote.
Leaving the stage in Delaware today, Biden stepped back to answer a question about himself and what could happen next.
“I am not concerned about my safety, security, or the inauguration,” the soon-to-be 46th POTUS said. “I’m not concerned. The American people are going to stand up, stand up now. Enough is enough is enough.”
Biden almost immediately afterward tweeted a summation of his speech and feelings – shared by many.
Violent supporters of President Donald Trump have breached the Capitol in Washington, as lawmakers met to confirm President-elect Joe Biden’s poll win.
In dramatic scenes, demonstrators swarmed the building as Congress members were escorted out by police.
Mr. Biden said the action should “end now”, and Mr. Trump released a video message asking supporters to go home.
The joint session of Congress certifying Mr. Biden’s win has been suspended and forced into recess.
There are reports of guns drawn in the building and at least one person shot. A woman was reported to be in critical condition after receiving a neck injury.
There has been an armed confrontation at the doors of the House of Representatives. Tear gas has also been used.
Members of Congress have been told to evacuate the building or remain where they are. One congresswoman tweeted that she was staying in her office.
Mr. Trump recorded a video message on Twitter calling on supporters to leave the Capitol but continuing to make unsubstantiated claims that Democrats had stolen the election.
“I know your pain, I know you’re hurt,” he said. “You have to go home now, we have to have peace… we don’t want anybody hurt.”
Mr. Biden said the demonstration “borders on sedition and it must end now”.
“At this hour our democracy is under unprecedented assault,” he said.
Mr. Trump’s spokeswoman, Kayleigh McEnany, tweeted that the National Guard was being deployed.
Rioters were seen marching through the building chanting “We want Trump” and one was photographed in the Senate president’s chair.
A citywide curfew has been declared from 18:00 to 06:00 (23:00 to 11:00 GMT) by Washington DC’s mayor.
There are also reports of protests at state legislatures in Kansas and Georgia.
Trump’s disruptive legacy
It’s a wildly dramatic day on Capitol Hill, Shakespearean in scope.
In the dying days of the Trump administration, the fuming president, unable to accept that he’s lost an election, has ordered his faithful followers to march on Congress, as lawmakers certify Joe Biden’s win and loyalist Republicans try to disrupt that process.
Sirens are wailing outside Capitol Hill, and police are swarming everywhere – camouflaged tactical officers are the latest to arrive.
From within the chamber and outside, the party of Trump in its different factions is chanting “stop the steal”. Mr. Trump’s angry and disappointed supporters have quite literally stormed the citadel, breaching the US Capitol building.
It’s a frightening atmosphere, with police massing on the scene, sirens wailing, people chanting “USA” and screaming at law enforcement. All this as Mr. Trump’s loyal vice-president and his Senate majority leader desert him at the 11th hour, and refuse to abandon their adherence to the constitution and subvert the election result.
Not since Herbert Hoover in 1932 has a president lost the White House, the House of Representatives, and the Senate. This alarming scene in Washington as the world watches is Mr. Trump’s disruptive legacy.
It’s a tense and volatile atmosphere, and not what a peaceful transfer of power looks like.
What were the protesters targeting?
A joint session of Congress was being held to certify Mr. Biden’s election victory on 3 November.
The proceedings are usually brief and ceremonial but Republican lawmakers have been objecting to some results.
For days Mr. Trump had also been putting pressure on Mr. Pence, who is presiding over the session, to block certification of the result.
But in a letter to Congress on Wednesday, Mr. Pence said that he had no “unilateral authority to decide which electoral votes should be counted”.
The protesters arrived at the Capitol from a “Save America Rally”, where Mr. Trump had urged them to support those legislators opposing Mr. Biden’s confirmation.
Mr. Trump has refused to concede the 3 November election, repeatedly alleging fraud without providing any evidence.
On Wednesday, he said again: “We will never give up. We will never concede.”
He has also tried to throw doubt on the integrity of Tuesday’s Senate run-off votes in the southern, traditionally Republican, state of Georgia. Projections by US TV networks suggest the Democrats have won one of the seats and are neck-and-neck for the second seat.
If the Democrats win both they will gain effective control of the Senate – something that will help Mr. Biden push forward his agenda after he is inaugurated as president on 20 January.
The House and Senate began a lengthy debate over President-elect Joe Biden’s victory as Republicans lodged their first objection to accepting the election results. President Trump addressed supporters near the White House before protesters marched to Capitol Hill.
Chaos engulfed the Capitol on Wednesday as a faction of Republicans sought to overturn President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s victory in Congress and a group of protesters loyal to President Trump tried to storm the building, demanding to be heard.
On an extraordinary day in Washington that laid bare deep divisions both between the two parties and within Republican ranks, the ceremonial counting of electoral votes that unfolds every four years in Congress was transformed into an explosive spectacle, with Mr. Trump stoking the unrest.
A group of Republicans led by Senator Ted Cruz of Texas objected early Wednesday afternoon to the counting of Arizona’s electoral votes, lodging the first of several extraordinary challenges to its outcome and forcing a two-hour debate in the House and Senate over Mr. Trump’s reckless election fraud claims.
“I rise for myself and 60 of my colleges to object to the count of the electoral ballots from Arizona,” said Representative Paul Gosar, Republican of Arizona. His objection was met with widespread applause by Republicans gathered on the floor of the House of Representatives for the joint session.
Bipartisan majorities in each chamber were prepared to turn back that challenge and others and formalize Mr. Biden’s victory. But the marathon session promised to be a volatile final act of the Trump presidency, with Mr. Trump — unwilling to cede the limelight or his fantasy of victory — transforming a moment of Democratic triumph into a day of defiance by summoning supporters to his backyard for an airing of grievances.
“We will never give up. We will never concede. It doesn’t happen,” Mr. Trump told a gathering of die-hard fans at the Ellipse behind the White House. He urged them to go to the Capitol to register their discontent, not long before a group of protesters breached barricades outside the edifice, clashing with police.
By using the proceeding as a forum for trying to subvert a democratic election, Mr. Trump and his allies are going where no party has since the Reconstruction era of the 19th century when Congress bargained over the presidency. The effort had already badly divided the Republican Party, forcing lawmakers to go on the record either siding with the president or upholding the results of a democratic election.
The objection to Arizona was the first of at least three expected during Wednesday’s session. Republicans were also eyeing Georgia and Pennsylvania, battleground states Mr. Biden won, for likely objections.
Lawmakers anticipated possible objections for up to three additional states — Michigan, Nevada, and Wisconsin — although it was not clear whether they would draw the requisite backing from a member of both the House and the Senate to be considered.
Mr. Cruz, a possible 2024 presidential contender, and his allies in the Senate has said he is merely trying to draw attention to the need for an electoral commission to audit the results. But by objecting, he joined ranks with a group of dozens of House Republicans backing Mr. Trump’s attempt to toss out the will of the voters to deliver him a second term in office.
Even before it began, the session was already driving sharp wedges into the Republican Party that threatened to do lasting damage to its cohesion, as lawmakers decided to cast their lot with Mr. Trump or the Constitution. Top party leaders in the House and Senate appeared to be headed for a high-profile split. And while only a dozen or so senators were expected to vote to reject the outcome in key states, as many as 70 percent of House Republicans could join the effort, stoking the dangerous belief of tens of millions of voters that Mr. Biden was elected illegitimately.
Despite a remarkable pressure campaign by Mr. Trump to unilaterally throw out states that supported Mr. Biden, Vice President Mike Pence, who was presiding as the president of the Senate, said just before the session began that he did not believe doing so was constitutional and would exercise his duties as his predecessors had. The outcome, after four years of loyal support for the president, risked his political standing in a party Mr. Trump still dominates.
“It is my considered judgment that my oath to support and defend the Constitution constrains me from claiming unilateral authority to determine which electoral votes should be counted and which should not,” he wrote in a letter.
Congress’s counting process began at 1 p.m. and the session had already accepted results from Alabama and Alaska before the objection to Arizona was lodged. A member of the House and Senate must agree for any objection to having force.
The House and Senate are convening Wednesday for a joint session of Congress to tally electoral votes from all 50 states and the District of Columbia, the final step in confirming President-elect Joe Biden’s victory in the presidential election over challenges from Republicans that will lengthen the proceedings.
Required under the Constitution, the meeting is typically a ceremonial affair, marking the final step in the electoral process before the presidential inauguration on January 20. But this year’s session is far from routine, as a coalition of Republicans from both chambers will try to reject some states’ election results over alleged election irregularities, while outside the halls of Congress, President Trump’s supporters have descended on the nation’s capital to make their final push to keep him in office.
Soon after the joint session began, GOP lawmakers objected to results from Arizona, a move that prompts two hours of debate in each chamber. A majority of each chamber would be required to reject Arizona’s electors, a virtual impossibility has given Democrats’ control of the House. More lawmakers have promised to contest the results in Pennsylvania and other battleground states.
In an extraordinary rebuke just before the joint session convened, Vice President Mike Pence defied the president and told lawmakers he does not have the authority to reject states’ electoral votes. Mr. Trump has repeatedly pressured Pence to reject votes from several states, a power the vice president does not have under the Constitution.
The plan from some GOP lawmakers to challenge the electoral votes split Senate Republicans, with more than a dozen committing to counting the results.
The joint sessions to tally the results of the 2012 and 2016 elections each lasted less than an hour. But Wednesday’s event is expected to stretch into the evening because of the Republican attempts to toss the electoral votes from some battleground states.
Under the Constitution, the final step in the 2020 presidential election is for a joint session of Congress to meet on Jan. 6 to count the Electoral College votes and officially declare a winner. Governors certified and sealed their states’ results after their electors signed off on them on Dec. 14, and Joe Biden and Kamala Harris won with 306 votes to Donald Trump and Mike Pence’s 232 votes.
This session is typically a ceremonial affair, but this year it’s expected to highlight the bitterly divided reaction between the two parties to the 2020 election results and last for hours.
If any House member is joined by a senator to object to any state’s electoral vote tally, they can object and force a debate and votes. More than a dozen Republican senators and a large group of House GOP lawmakers have indicated they will register challenges to multiples states’ results.
Some of those members even acknowledged that they don’t expect to succeed or change the outcome, but are using the process to highlight what they believe are instances of fraud. None have provided any evidence to date, and legal challenges in states mounted by the Trump campaign and its allies have consistently failed.
How the joint session will work
Vice President Pence presides over the joint session, and it is his duty under the law to announce the results. Members of the House and Senate will convene in the House chamber at 1 p.m. ET.
The certificates from each state are opened and read in alphabetical order. If any House member raises an objection, they need a senator to sign the objection in order for it to be considered. According to GOP sources familiar with the discussions about the plans, the Republican lawmakers planning to object on Wednesday are focused primarily on three states — Arizona, Georgia, and Pennsylvania. They are also weighing challenges for Michigan, Nevada, and Wisconsin.
Texas GOP Sen. Ted Cruz is expected to sign onto the challenge regarding Arizona’s results and press for the appointment of an electoral commission that can examine any claims related to voter fraud.
Process for considering and voting on an objection
If both a House member and senator register their objection in writing, the joint session is recessed, and the House and Senate meet separately to debate the issue for up to two hours. Members are allowed up to 5 minutes each to speak and then both chambers vote. A simple majority is needed in both chambers for an objection to succeed.
With social distancing rules during the coronavirus pandemic, voting takes longer, so each objection could result in multiple hours of debate and vote timing.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., will preside over any House debate and has tapped Democratic Reps. Adam Schiff, Calif., Zoe Lofgren, Calif., Jamie Raskin, Md., and Joe Neguse, Colo., to lead any responses to GOP objections. But other Democrats from states Republicans are focused on are expected to also speak out against the effort as well.
In a letter to House Democrats on Monday evening, Pelosi called the day one “of historic significance” and says Biden and Harris won “decisively.” She cautioned that members should view the session as “a solemn occasion” and “we will have a civics lesson about protecting the integrity of our democracy.”
Pence, as president of the Senate, is expected to preside over the Senate debate. But Iowa GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley, who is president pro tem, is prepared to also be available if Pence is not available for any portion of the debate. The president falsely claimed the vice president could alter the results, but neither the Constitution nor any federal law allows for that.
An administration official who was not authorized to speak on the record told NPR on Tuesday, “The VP intends to follow the law and uphold the Constitution tomorrow.” This official noted that Pence, who is a lawyer by training, has prepared for the joint session by meeting with the Senate parliamentarian, reading legal opinions, and studying the Constitution.
After the New York Times reported Tuesday that Pence told the president at a lunch at the White House that he does not have the ability to block the certification for Biden, Trump released a statement late in the evening calling that report “fake news.”
The statement from the president maintains: “The Vice President and I are in total agreement that the Vice President has the power to act” and the vice president has “several options under the U.S. Constitution.”
After each chamber votes — and no challenge is expected to garner enough to succeed — the members of House and Senate return to the joint session and move onto the next state. After they have processed all the results, Pence reads the final tally and announces the election results for the president and vice president.
Leaders have warned members the process is likely to last several hours and could involve late-night votes. Democrats hold the majority in the House and roughly two dozen Republicans in the Senate, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., have indicated they will join Democrats to certify Biden as the winner, so the outcome is not in doubt.
Thousands of pro-Trump protesters are expected to descend on Washington to voice support for the GOP objections. D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser has advised residents to stay away from downtown and local law enforcement is prepared to respond to any possible violent demonstrations.
The Houston Texans have agreed to hire New England Patriots director of player personnel Nick Caserio as their new GM, according to a report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter and confirmed by the Boston Globe.
The Patriots signed Caserio to a new contract in February after blocking him twice from interviewing with the Texans. The Patriots filed tampering charges against Houston in 2019, but the NFL passed rules in May preventing teams from blocking interviews that are a “clear promotion,” opening the door for Caserio’s new position.
Caserio joined the Patriots in 2001 as a personnel assistant. After a brief foray into scouting, he worked his way up in the organization and spent the 2007 season as the team’s wide receiver coach. He returned to the personnel side and became director of player personnel in 2008. The Patriots won three Super Bowls since he assumed that position.
According to Schefter, Caserio was in Houston on Tuesday but was expected to fly back to New England on Tuesday night. Caserio was one of several candidates for the position, which included Texans director of player personnel Matt Bazirgan. He rejoins former Patriots character coach Jack Easterby, who serves as the Texans’ executive vice president of football operations.
The Patriots’ obvious choice to replace Caserio, per the Globe’s Ben Volin, is Dave Ziegler — New England’s assistant director of player personnel and a candidate for the open GM job in Denver.
The Texans finished last season 4-12. They do not own their first- or second-round picks.
Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, a senior member of the House Committees on Judiciary, Budget, and Homeland Security, Ranking Member of the Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security and Investigations, issued this statement on the killing of Joshua Feast:
“As the Member of Congress representing Texas’ 18th congressional district and as a senior member of the House Committee on the Judiciary, it saddens me to learn that yet another young black man, Joshua Feast, was killed at the hands of law enforcement. And to further learn, as has been verified by medical experts, that Joshua was shot in the back while running away is even more disturbing.
“The strikingly high per capita number of lives lost to gun violence in this relatively small city of LaMarque, TX cannot be ignored. I am working diligently in Washington daily to address this issue—not with short term fixes – but by seeking real solutions to address the root causes. However, this does not mean that police misconduct is acceptable in high crime areas. Every instance of alleged police misconduct and wrongful death must be thoroughly, impartially, and transparently investigated. We expect the same in this case of Joshua Feast’s killing by LMPD Officer Josè Santos.
“As we await the findings of the Galveston County Sheriff’s Office investigation, my office stands ready to assist in whatever way necessary to ensure swift, certain and fair justice.”
Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo confirms the region has crossed the state’s hospitalization threshold to trigger COVID-19 reopening rollbacks.
“The Harris County region officially crossed the state’s hospitalization threshold triggering #COVID19 reopening rollbacks. Honestly, this is just another milestone on the road to a catastrophe unless each of us acts. We can’t rely on a small occupancy rollback. Do your part,” Hidalgo tweeted Tuesday afternoon.
This follows an order by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott that any Trauma Service Area (TSA) that has had seven consecutive days in which the number of COVID-19 hospitalizations exceeds 15% must close bars and reduce restaurant capacity to 50%.
On Monday, TSA Q, a region that includes Harris County, was just one day away from having COVID-19 hospitalizations at 15% capacity or higher for seven days in a row, according to data from the Department of State Health Services (DSHS).
Department of State Health Services data showed Texas TSA Q was at 15% from Dec. 29 to Jan. 3, which is six days in a row. Because of that, the Houston area will soon experience COVID-19 restrictions seen during the earlier phases of reopening.
Earlier in the day, Hidalgo addressed the looming rollback, which was pending at the time.
“This is not an academic exercise. It is not a threshold that we should in any way celebrate reaching. What we need to recognize is that without community action, we are going to find ourselves in a very difficult situation,” Hidalgo said.
Hidalgo added that this is the last wake-up call we might get and called for residents to avoid any gatherings with people they don’t live with to help prevent the spread of the virus.
When asked about Gov. Abbott’s threshold, she said it’s something she welcomes.
“I welcome a threshold the governor has laid out. We need that sharp change right now,” Hidalgo said. “I am concerned that this threshold has not yielded the necessary change in other areas, like El Paso. Right now, the best thing we can do is take this threshold as a wake-up call.”
TSA Q includes the following counties: Austin, Colorado, Fort Bend, Harris, Matagorda, Montgomery, Walker, Waller, and Wharton.
In Montgomery County, a business owner said it feels like this is all an attack on small businesses and is worried about losing her staff.
“Somebody has to put their foot down. Somebody has to say no,” said Sandra Young, owner of Bokeeters in Montgomery County. “We have been force-fed coronavirus for a year. It’s been shoved down our throats I don’t know what else we can do.”
Also in agreeance with Young is Congressman Dan Crenshaw. He reacted on Twitter, saying businesses should not comply. Crenshaw also went on to say lockdowns are not supported by law and to “stop stealing people’s right to make a living.”
No other bakery treat can beat King Cake during the Mardi Gras season. Take a stab at making your own with this recipe from the Junior League of Lake Charles cookbook, “Marshes to Mansions.” Get the Recipe ►
Mardi Gras Parades Update
Mardi Gras of Southwest Louisiana has decided it is in the best interest of public health and safety to forgo hosting any parades to celebrate Mardi Gras in 2021. Keep the Mardi Gras spirit alive by purchasing decor for your home or office or purchasing king cakes from local bakers. Info will continue to be updated here as it is made available.
Enter the Mardi Gras Shoebox Float Contest
Visit Lake Charles is bringing Mardi Gras to life with our Shoebox Float Contest. Using a cardboard shoebox and decorations, you are only limited by your imagination. View Rules and Entry Details ►
Beginning this weekend, bus shuttle service will be provided along METRORail’s Red Line to allow work crews to complete a track maintenance and improvement project. Transit service modifications will begin at the start of service Saturday, Jan. 9, 2021, and continue until the end of service Sunday, Jan. 10.
Free two-way bus shuttles will replace train service between Fannin South and Downtown Transit Center stations during this period. Bus shuttles will run every 10 minutes or sooner. METRO staff and/or platform signage will direct riders to board at nearby bus shuttle stops. A list of shuttle stops can be found here.
Red Line customers should allow additional travel time. METRO’s TRIP App and Next Bus Arrival Texting service may not reflect accurate departure and arrival information during this time. Please monitor METRO’s Twitter and Facebook pages for updates. METRO also offers real-time information through its service alerts system.
Customers may also contact METRO’s Customer Service Center at 713-635-4000 if they have any questions or need trip planning information.
