Bernie Sanders skewers the president over Capitol siege: ‘The man directly responsible for the chaos of today is Donald Trump’

By: John Haltiwanger; Business Insider

Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont did not mince words in terms of who he blames for the violence at the US Capitol on Wednesday, explicitly blaming President Donald Trump for the pandemonium.

“The man directly responsible for the chaos of today is Donald Trump, who has made it clear that he will do anything to remain in power – including insurrection and inciting violence,” Sanders said in a tweet. “Trump will go down in history as the worst and most dangerous president in history.”

Sanders has been an unabashed critic of Trump, often excoriating the president over his authoritarian tendencies. He came relatively close to being Trump’s opponent in the 2020 presidential race, but was ultimately defeated by President-elect Joe Biden for the Democratic nomination.

Trump incited a riot that amounted to an attempted coup at the US Capitol on Wednesday as he continued to push for the result of the 2020 election to be overturned. 

A pro-Trump mob stormed the Capitol building, and a woman was shot and killed in the process. Property was damaged as the violent crowd pushed into the building, with some entering the House and Senate chambers. 

The riot was preceded by a Trump speech near the White House, in which Trump reiterated his baseless claims that he lost the election due to mass voter fraud. He urged his supporters to march on the Capitol building as lawmakers gathered in a joint session to certify the Electoral College vote, which would’ve finalized Biden’s win. 

The process got delayed by the violence, and Congress was evacuated. Meanwhile, Trump attacked Vice President Mike Pence, who presides over the certification, for refusing to overturn the election result. Pence does not have authority to unilaterally reject the result, despite Trump’s claims. 

Trump has issued lukewarm calls for his supporters in Washington, DC, to cease any violent activities and “go home in peace,” while continuing to fan the flames of insurrection with ongoing, false assertions that the election was stolen from him.