2021 may have just begun, but it has already struck havoc. On Jan. 6, President Trump’s supporters raided the Capitol building due to his defeat in the election. Trump had used social media to ignite the storming of the Capitol by encouraging his supporters to march to Capitol Hill where Congress was meeting to certify the Electoral College for Joe Biden as the new president. A president who claimed he wanted to “Make America Great Again” caused an uproar throughout our society.
Rioters are still being arrested for not only trespassing the Capitol, but for a long list of things. Stealing someone’s mail is considered a federal crime, so the fact that someone stole Nancy Pelosi’s mail and laptop was not a shining moment. A list of approximately 100 people were arrested from the day of the riot to the eve of the inauguration, yet the investigation is ongoing. The D.C. police has announced there can be up to a $1,000 reward for anyone who discloses information that leads to the arrest of a suspected rioter.
The FBI tweeted they are offering up to a $75,000 reward to anyone who has information leading to the location, arrest and conviction of the rioters who had planted two pipe bombs at political headquarters near Capitol Hill. Within the FBI’s tweet, they included a photo of the suspect and details they have in regard to the incidents. The rioters were excessive with their actions and could have gotten their point across in a less harmful manner.
A big question is why did the FBI not take action sooner? They admitted to having knowledge of the riot before it happened. Maybe if they had taken action, the riot could have been stopped. At this point, all the FBI can do is dig through footage from the day of the riot and try to track down the suspects. They only made it more work for themselves at the end of the day.
There should have never been a decrease in security presence to begin with. Years ago, people would not be able to step foot near the Capitol, and now there are law enforcement officers directing citizens inside. President Biden has a lot of work to do in order for the country to heal. Between Covid-19 and the Capitol Hill attack, President Biden does not have an easy beginning. Biden is going to have to be very mindful of the things he is saying due to the sensitive time the country is facing.
Several Capitol police officers were suspended due to their role within the riot. People who are supposed to protect us are partaking in harmful events which is mind-blowing. The year 2020 was hard for so many people, there was no reason for people to start off 2021 by striking Capitol Hill just because they felt Trump should stay in office. Trump, who was the leader of our country highlighted the separation within this country. There have always been political differences, but Trump had made headlines that no president has made before, and not in a good way. People know right from wrong and this was something people knew was wrong but did not care.
