What's Next For Trump After Chaos, Violence And Mockery Took Over As Mob Run Amok In US Capitol

Outgoing United States President Donald Trump on Thursday conceded defeat to President-Elect Joe Biden and condemned the previous day¡¯s violence at the US Capitol in Washington DC. He called it a ¡°heinous attack¡± and said he was ¡°outraged by the violence, lawlessness and mayhem¡±.

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¡°America is and must always be a nation of law and order,¡± Trump said in a video message on Twitter. ¡°To demonstrators who infiltrated the Capitol: you have defiled the seat of American democracy. To those who engage in the acts of violence and destruction: you do not represent our country. And to those who broke the law: you will pay.¡±

pic.twitter.com/csX07ZVWGe

¡ª Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 8, 2021

Before we understand what happened on Wednesday, let us first see what's next for US and Trump in a list of consequential things that happened on Thursday in relatively short succession:

1. Sen. Chuck Schumer, who will soon be majority leader, believes that President Donald Trump should be removed from office using the 25th Amendment.
2. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, whose is married to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, resigned citing Trump's role in instigating his supporters to storm the US Capitol on Wednesday.
3. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that if Trump is not removed from office using the 25th Amendment, the House will move to impeach him.

AFP via Getty

Why the 25th Amendment?

It's the one that provides for the replacement of a president who has been deemed "unable to discharge the powers and duties of the office." Unless the president has declared himself incapacitated -- say, for a medical procedure -- putting it into action requires the agreement of a majority of the Cabinet.

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So why is the chain of events above so important?

McConnell, who has partnered with Trump to reshape the federal judiciary, forcefully rebuked him on Wednesday -- twice -- and shot down Republican objections to counting electoral votes for President-elect Joe Biden. If there were going to be a Cabinet member who would help generate support for Trump's ouster using the 25th Amendment, it might have been McConnell's wife, Chao.

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So her departure from the Cabinet dims the likelihood of using the amendment to remove Trump, who is increasingly isolated in these final days of his term but still, as many have pointed out, has access to the nuclear codes. Chao's resignation isn't effective until Monday, but any effort to protect the country from these last days of Trump would probably have to go through the Congress via a lightning-quick impeachment process -- Trump's second -- as Pelosi suggested. "My phone is exploding with 'impeach, impeach, impeach,'" she told reporters Thursday.

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Timeline of how the chaos unfolded

In an precedented turn of events, bedlam broke loose in the US Capitol on Wednesday when President Donald Trump¡¯s supporters laid siege to the building. They scaled walls to enter the premises, knocking violently on senate office doors and shouting obscenities at senators who hid behind chairs and closed doors. This after Trump at a rally had urged his supporters to march to the Capitol.

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Here's how the chaos unfolded as per an eyewitness account by New York Times reporters.

A ceremonial session of Congress to formally declare President-elect Joe Biden¡¯s victory devolved in an instant into a scene of violence and mayhem in the Capitol when a pro-Trump mob stormed the building, halting the counting of electoral votes. The session was disrupted by pro-Trump slogans coming from outside the Senate Hall.

Whoa: Trump supporters going at it with the police on the steps of the Capitol as Congress counts the Electoral College ballots inside pic.twitter.com/LiQhaa5KkQ

¡ª philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) January 6, 2021

No long after Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky warned fellow Republican senators that any efforts to upend the US elections would trigger a ¡°death spell¡± for the democracy, fear surged through the Senate chamber.

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Large mob breached US Capitol

A large group of pro-Trump protesters broke through barricades breached the building, and police whisked Vice President Mike Pence off the dais and out of the chamber, as the shouts of the mob could be heard outside the door.

Watch as this hyper-aggressive mob terrorizes a Black police officer defending the Capitol. Can¡¯t even imagine what was going through his mind. No backup for half the video. Who knows what could have happened to him. pic.twitter.com/HfJVn7CoYj

¡ª Demetria Obilor (@DemetriaObilor) January 6, 2021

The violence and destruction taking place at the US Capitol Must Stop and it Must Stop Now. Anyone involved must respect Law Enforcement officers and immediately leave the building.

¡ª Mike Pence (@Mike_Pence) January 6, 2021

Above the Senate floor, inside the press gallery, reporters craned their necks to catch a glimpse of the mayhem outside. Journalists were rushed into the Senate chamber, and asked by the staff aides to quickly decide if they want to be inside the Senate chamber or leave. ¡°Senator Todd Young, R-Ind., yelled for the doors to be locked,¡± the New York Times said.

CNN

View from inside the Capitol as people gather on the West Front. The Capitol is currently on lockdown. pic.twitter.com/XKNKWNbHxZ

¡ª Caroline Brehman (@carolinebrehman) January 6, 2021

Shots were fired in the melee

Looking at her phone, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., alerted fellow senators to the escalating danger and shouted out that there had been ¡°shots fired¡± somewhere in the melee. Panic tinged the voices of both lawmakers and journalists.

CNN

Some Senate aides barred the doors of their offices as protesters beat on them, shouting profanities. As it became clear the Senate chamber was not safe, security officers ordered the senators to leave. US media reports suggest that some of the Trump supporters were even armed with explosives that securities agencies were able to neutralize later.

Police officers are holding them steps away from the Senate chamber, which is locked. Senators are inside. I see a few confederate flags. pic.twitter.com/YI7X7KmuUG

¡ª Igor Bobic (@igorbobic) January 6, 2021

As lawmakers and staff rushed out, aides grabbed hold of the boxes containing the Electoral College certificates, making sure that the vandals could not literally steal the results of the election. ¡°If our capable floor staff hadn¡¯t grabbed them, they would have been burned by the mob,¡± said Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore.

Through the tunnels of the Capitol, senators walked quickly with an armed police escort.

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Around 4.15 am (Indian Standard Time), US officials said they successfully secured the Capitol building following a four-hour confrontation with pro-Trump rioters. The Capitol Police is now in the process of dispersing Trump supporters from the site, officials added.

Despite the presence of officers in full riot gear, dozens of Trump supporters were seen violating the curfew ordered by Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser.

Trump supporters chase away the outnumbered Capitol Police and throw objects at them. pic.twitter.com/SHLCslQOty

¡ª Julio Rosas (@Julio_Rosas11) January 6, 2021

Meanwhile, US Vice President Mike Pence reconvened the US Congress to certify President-elect Joe Biden's Electoral College win once the Capitol building was cleared of Trump supporters.

4 died in violence

The violence resulted in deaths of four people. One woman was shot by the US Capitol police as the mob tried to break through a barricaded door, and three died in medical emergencies. The police also arrested 30 people for violating a curfew that was imposed in Washington, DC, after rioters stormed the US Capitol.

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For now, the Mayor of Washington DC has extended the public emergency for 15 days. Reacting to the rioting and violence by unruly Trump supporters, Twitter and Facebook have decided to freeze US President Donald Trump's accounts on their platforms.

As a result of the unprecedented and ongoing violent situation in Washington, D.C., we have required the removal of three @realDonaldTrump Tweets that were posted earlier today for repeated and severe violations of our Civic Integrity policy. https://t.co/k6OkjNG3bM

¡ª Twitter Safety (@TwitterSafety) January 7, 2021

Multiple reports of arson and violence were coming in from outside the Capitol building and other parts of the city.

These images capture the horrific scene that took place outside of the Capitol building today.

Truly disgraceful.

Oh wait¡ªmy mistake. These are actually from the BLM ¡°protests¡± over the summer. pic.twitter.com/BFO3ZJdVbD

¡ª Candace Owens (@RealCandaceO) January 7, 2021

Top White House aides resign

Two top aides to first lady Melania Trump resigned in the wake of violence, and more top White House officials were considering resigning, including national security adviser Robert O¡¯Brien and his deputy, Matthew Pottinger, sources familiar with the matter said.

Addressing the nation following the storming of the US Capitol, President-elect Joe Biden said, "At this hour, our democracy is under unprecedented assault. Unlike anything we have seen in modern times. An assault on the citadel of liberty, the Capitol itself."

President-elect Biden addresses the nation: https://t.co/BXM3SZK25R

¡ª Biden-Harris Presidential Transition (@Transition46) January 6, 2021

Former President of the US Barack Obama also released a statement following the violence.

Here¡¯s my statement on today¡¯s violence at the Capitol. pic.twitter.com/jLCKo2D1Ya

¡ª Barack Obama (@BarackObama) January 7, 2021

"History will rightly remember today's violence at the Capitol, incited by a sitting president who has continued to baselessly lie about the outcome of a lawful election, as a moment of great dishonor and shame for our nation," Obama said in the statement on Wednesday evening. "But we'd be kidding ourselves if we treated it as a total surprise," he added.

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World leaders condemn violence

World leaders, including UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Canadian PM Justin Trudeau, also condemned the attack on the US Capitol. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said, "In such circumstances, it is important that political leaders impress on their followers the need to refrain from violence, as well as to respect democratic processes and the rule of law."

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a tweet said he is "distressed" to see the news.

Distressed to see news about rioting and violence in Washington DC. Orderly and peaceful transfer of power must continue. The democratic process cannot be allowed to be subverted through unlawful protests.

¡ª Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 7, 2021

Remember, the mob¡¯s march on the Capitol came just after Trump encouraged supporters to do so during a 70-minute address rehashing his false claims that Democrats stole the election, experts believe. Trump who was speaking at a ¡°Save America March¡± gathering at the opposite end of the National Mall, vowed to ¡°never concede¡± the election and urged his supporters to march to the Capitol to pressure Republican lawmakers to act with ¡°the kind of pride and boldness that they need to take back our country¡± ¡ª by rejecting states¡¯ election results that show Biden won.