Hoyer Statement Marking Four Years After the Attack on the U.S. Capitol

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (MD-05) released the following statement today marking four years after the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021:

"In the Capitol Rotunda hangs a painting that depicts George Washington in the Maryland State House resigning his commission as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army in 1783, setting the precedent for the peaceful transition of power. Four years ago today, in the shadow of that very painting and in defiance of the principle it represents, violent insurrectionists tore through our Capitol, attacked our brave Capitol Police, and terrorized Members and staff – including many of my own staffers who barricaded themselves in my office – in an effort to overturn the results of a free and fair election. They did so at the urging of Donald Trump, who continues to spread lies about the outcome of the 2020 presidential election to this day.

"The MAGA right has tried to rewrite the history of January 6. Trump described the insurrection as a 'a day of love.' Those besieged in our Capitol that day can attest that January 6 was a day of violence, sedition, and hate that left more than 140 police officers injured, two of whom tragically died. Trump has called the insurrectionists 'unbelievable patriots' and signaled his plans to pardon them for the crimes they committed that day. No matter how hard MAGA Republicans try to sanitize the reality of that terrible day, however, the American people will remember January 6 for what it was: the gravest attack on our democracy since at least the Civil War and possibly in all of American history.

"Four years later, our Congress gathers again to certify the presidential election. Though I, along with tens of millions of American voters, was displeased with its outcome, I will not dispute its results, as Trump did four years ago. Leader Jeffries said it plainly last week: ‘we are not election deniers.’ As Washington did all those years ago, we recognize that our democracy and the peaceful transfer of power are more important than any one person or any one party.”