WASHINGTON (AP) – Protesters backing President Donald Trump violently clashed with law enforcement on Wednesday, plunging the Capitol into chaos, locking the building and halting the vote to confirm Joe Biden’s presidential victory.
Dozens of people breached the Capitol’s security perimeter and lawmakers in the House room were told to put on gas masks when tear gas was fired in the Rotunda.
A chaplain prayed while police guarded the room’s doors and lawmakers tried to gather information about what happened.
An announcement was played in the Capitol as lawmakers gathered and were expected to vote to confirm Biden’s victory. Due to an “outside security threat,” no one could enter or leave the Capitol complex, the recording said.
Both rooms abruptly went into recess. Columbia District Mayor Muriel Bowser issued a curfew for 6 p.m.
The clashes took place outside the site where President-elect Biden will be inaugurated in just two weeks.
Protesters demolished metal barricades at the bottom of the steps of the Capitol and were met by agents in riot gear. Some tried to push past the officers holding shields, and officers could be seen firing pepper spray into the crowd to stop them. Some in the crowd shouted “traitors” as agents tried to stop them.
A suspicious package was also reported in the area, Capitol Police said.
The skirmishes came just shortly after Trump addressed thousands of his supporters and shook the crowd to his groundless allegations of electoral fraud at a rally near the White House on Wednesday ahead of the Congress vote.
“We will not allow them to silence your voice,” Trump told protesters, who lined up before dawn to be in a prime position to hear the president.