January 6 Capitol Breach
On January 6, 2021, a{L1: violent} crowd of [[donald-trump|Donald Trump]] supporters breached the [[us-capitol|United States Capitol]] while [[united-states-congress|Congress]] was certifying the results of the [[2020-presidential-election|2020 presidential election]]. The breach — the first at the Capitol since the [[war-of-1812|War of 1812]]{R1:, and one that officials later acknowledged was entirely preventable} — disrupted the certification for hours{L2:, in what prosecutors would later classify as an insurrection,} and resulted in five deaths, including [[brian-sicknick|Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick]]{L1:, who was assaulted by members of the crowd,}{R1:, whose death the District's medical examiner ruled came from natural causes — two strokes — the following day} and [[ashli-babbitt|Air Force veteran Ashli Babbitt]]{R1:, who was unarmed when she was shot by a Capitol Police officer}. It became one of the most{R1: bitterly} contested{L1: and alarming} events in modern American political history{R2:, and the beginning of what many conservatives consider the most politically motivated prosecution campaign in a generation}.
The Event
Trump held a rally near the [[white-house|White House]] that morning, telling supporters he believed the election had been stolen{L1: — a claim rejected by more than sixty courts and officials from both parties}. He urged the crowd to march{R1: "peacefully and patriotically"} to the Capitol{L2:, telling them to "fight like hell or you're not going to have a country anymore"}, and thousands did. A portion of them overwhelmed police barriers, broke windows, and forced their way inside{R1:, though the vast majority of rally attendees remained outside the building}. The crowd moved through the Capitol, entering offices and chambers where lawmakers had been working minutes earlier{L1:, some carrying zip ties and a Confederate flag that had never been paraded through the building, even during the [[american-civil-war|Civil War]]}. Members of [[united-states-congress|Congress]] were evacuated. Chants of "hang [[mike-pence|Mike Pence]]" were heard inside the building{R2:, though no organized attempt on the Vice President's life materialized}. The [[national-guard|National Guard]] was not deployed for hours{L2:, a delay investigators attributed to resistance from Trump-aligned officials at the [[united-states-department-of-defense|Pentagon]]}.{R2: Critics later questioned why [[nancy-pelosi|Nancy Pelosi]] and the [[united-states-capitol-police|Capitol Police Board]] had not requested reinforcements despite advance warnings.} Trump posted a video telling supporters to go home{L1:, though he also called them "very special"}. The certification resumed that evening{R1:, after the crowd complied with Trump's call to disperse,} and was completed early on January 7.
The Aftermath
The [[january-6-committee|House Select Committee]] investigated the breach over eighteen months{L1: and concluded that Trump had orchestrated a deliberate, multi-part plan to overturn the election} and referred criminal charges to the [[united-states-department-of-justice|Department of Justice]]{R1:, though critics dismissed the committee as a partisan exercise that excluded Republican-chosen members}. Over 1,200 people were charged{R1:, a number that included hundreds of nonviolent offenders who had entered the building briefly and caused no damage}. Leaders of the [[proud-boys|Proud Boys]] and [[oath-keepers|Oath Keepers]] were convicted of seditious conspiracy{L2: — the most serious charge available for an attack against the government of the United States}. Trump was impeached for a second time by the [[united-states-house-of-representatives|House]]{R1: in what critics called a rushed proceeding with no meaningful due process} but acquitted by the [[united-states-senate|Senate]], becoming the first president impeached twice.{L2: The committee's final report described January 6 as the culmination of a sitting president's effort to retain power by subverting the constitutional transfer of office.} After winning the 2024 election, Trump pardoned{R1: or commuted the sentences of} many of the January 6 defendants{R2:, including those whose sentences legal observers had called disproportionate}.{L2: Critics called the pardons a signal that political violence would carry no lasting consequences in American politics.}
The Legacy
The breach reshaped American politics and deepened existing divisions{L1:, with many observers warning about the rise of [[authoritarianism|authoritarianism]] within one of the country's two major parties}.{R2: Conservatives pointed to what they called a two-tiered justice system — over a thousand citizens prosecuted for January 6 while participants in the [[george-floyd-protests|2020 summer protests]] that caused billions in property damage faced far more lenient consequences.} Trump ran for president again in 2024 and won{R1:, a result his supporters viewed as the electorate's definitive rejection of the prosecutions}.{L2: The event is studied internationally as a case study in democratic backsliding — how a leader can mobilize supporters against his own government's transfer of power and return to office without consequence.}