In their quest to “follow the facts where they lead us,” the House select committee charged with investigating the January 6 riots watched a jaw-dropping video of the day’s violence (watch above).
Rep. Bennie Thompson, the committee chair, described the chaos as the worst “since 1814 when British soldiers sacked the building.”
Rioters could be heard chanting ‘Hang Mike Pence’ and ‘Where’s Nancy?’
“They stormed onto the Senate floor because they wanted to stop the Senate from certifying the election. The rioters tried to take over the House floor for the same reason,” Thompson said.
The four police officers set to testify on Tuesday watched the footage along with lawmakers. Daniel Hodges of the Metropolitan Police Department saw himself pinned in between doors.
From NBC News:
Sgt. Gonell took a Kleenex and wiped his eyes at least three times. At one point, Officer Fanone stopped watching and looked down. He looked back up and started to watch again about 30 seconds later.
During the video of Officer Hodges in the door, Hodges shifted slightly in his chair but didn’t look away.
At another point, Fanone looked down and then over to his right at Gonell. He then stood up and whispered something to Gonell and clenched his shoulder, offering a measure of solidarity and support.