A congressional committee on Tuesday held its first hearing investigating the January 6 US Capitol attack, with evidence given by four police officers who struggled against a mob of then-president Donald Trump's supporters engaging in “medieval” violence and warnings from lawmakers against whitewashing the riot.
At the Democratic-led House of Representatives investigatory committee's first hearing, Officer Aquilino Gonell described being pummelled by rioters fired up by Mr Trump's false claims that the election had been stolen from him through widespread voting fraud.
“What we were subjected to that day was like something from a medieval battlefield. We fought hand to hand and inch by inch to prevent an invasion of the Capitol by a violent mob intent on subverting our democratic process,” added Mr Gonell. “The physical violence we experienced was horrific and devastating.”
Mr Gonell fought back tears as he recalled his family watching the violence unfold on television and wondering if he was alive.
The nine-member panel was formed after Senate Republicans blocked the creation of an independent commission to investigate the attack. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat, named the committee's members. Its chairman is Democrat Bennie Thompson.
In his opening remarks, Mr Thompson pledged that the panel's work will be “guided solely by the facts” and that there is no place for politics or partisanship. He also showed video of the violence, calling it “chilling".
Most House Republicans opposed the creation of the committee, calling it politically motivated. Liz Cheney, one of two Republicans on the panel and a fierce critic of Mr Trump, defended the panel's work and called for a thorough investigation.
“We must know what happened here at the Capitol. We must also know what happened every minute of that day in the White House — every phone call, every conversation, every meeting leading up to, during and after the attack,” Ms Cheney said.
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An explosion caused by a police munition is seen while supporters of former president Donald Trump gather in front of the US Capitol Building in Washington, US, January 6, 2021. Reuters -
A supporter of US President Donald J. Trump sits on the desk of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, after supporters of US President Donald J. Trump breached the US Capitol security in Washington. EPA -
Police detain a person as supporters of US President Donald Trump protest outside the US Capitol. AFP -
Protesters enter the US Capitol Building. AFP -
A protester holds a Trump flag inside the US Capitol Building near the Senate Chamber. AFP -
US Capitol police officers point their guns at a door that was vandalized in the House Chamber during a joint session of Congress. AFP -
Members of congress run for cover as protesters try to enter the House Chamber during a joint session of Congress. AFP -
Congress staffers barricade themselves after Trump supporters stormed inside the US Capitol. AFP -
Congress staffers barricade themselves after Trump supporters stormed inside the US Capitol. AFP -
Congress staffers hold up their hands while Capitol Police Swat teams check everyone in the room as they secure the floor of Trump supporters. AFP -
US Capitol Police stand detain protesters outside of the House Chamber during a joint session of Congress. AFP -
A supporter of US President Donald Trump sits at a desk after invading the Capitol Building. AFP -
A protester sits in the Senate Chamber. AFP -
Pro-Trump protesters tear down a barricade as they clash with Capitol police during a rally to contest the certification of the 2020 US presidential election results by the US Congress. Reuters -
Police hold back supporters of US President Donald Trump as they gather outside the US Capitol's Rotunda. AFP -
Supporters of US President Donald Trump enter the US Capitol's Rotunda. AFP -
A protester is seen hanging from the balcony in the Senate Chamber. AFP -
Riot police prepare to move demonstrators away from the US Capitol. AFP -
Trump supporters clash with police and security forces as they storm the US Capitol. AFP -
Trump supporters clash with police and security forces, as they storm the US Capitol. AFP -
A supporter of US President Donald Trump wears a gas mask as he protests after storming the US Capitol. AFP -
Pro-Trump supporters storm the US Capitol following a rally. AFP -
Supporters of US President Donald Trump protest inside the US Capitol. AFP -
US President Donald Trump is seen on TV from a video message released on Twitter addressing rioters at the US Capitol, in the Brady Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, DC. AFP -
Trump supporters clash with police and security forces as they storm the US Capitol in Washington, DC. AFP -
Supporters of US President Donald Trump protest in the US Capitol Rotunda. AFP -
Paramedics perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation on a patient. AFP -
A wounded protester is carried on barricade as demonstrators breach the US Capital building grounds. Bloomberg -
US Vice President Mike Pence and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi preside over a joint session of Congress to certify the 2020 Electoral College results after supporters of President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol earlier in the day on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. EPA -
Rep. Andy Kim, D-N.J., cleans up debris and personal belongings strewn across the floor of the Rotunda in the early morning hours of the morning, after protesters stormed the Capitol in Washington. AP
She added, “If those responsible are not held accountable, and if Congress does not act responsibly, this will remain a cancer on our constitutional republic.” Ms Cheney said that she hopes the nation does not become so blinded by partisanship that “we throw away the miracle” of American democracy.
Mr Gonell and Harry Dunn, officers with the US Capitol Police, and Michael Fanone and Daniel Hodges, officers with the District of Columbia police, appeared before the panel in uniform.
Mr Dunn, who is black, said in prepared evidence that rioters called him a racial slur while he was trying to defend the Capitol after he challenged their claims that no one had voted for President Joe Biden by telling them that he himself was a Biden supporter.
Mr Fanone was pulled into the crowd of rioters, beaten, attacked with a Taser and robbed of his badge, police radio and ammunition. As one rioter tried to pull his gun from its holster, Mr Fanone could hear him saying he planned to take it and kill him.
The officer said he was beaten unconscious and doctors told him he had suffered a heart attack.
Four people died on the day of the violence, including one rioter fatally shot by police and three others who died of natural causes. A Capitol Police officer who had been attacked by protesters died the following day. Two police officers who took part in the defence of the Capitol later took their own lives. More than a hundred police officers were injured.
Police were overwhelmed during the attack, with rioters smashing windows, fighting with officers and sending Congressmen and then-vice president Mike Pence scrambling for safety.
“Some people are trying to deny what happened, to whitewash it, to turn the insurrectionists into martyrs. But the whole world saw the reality of what happened on January 6,” Mr Thompson said. “The hangman's gallows sitting out there on our National Mall. The flag of that first failed and disgraced rebellion against our union being paraded through the Capitol. The hatred. The bigotry. The violence.
“And all of it: for a vile, vile lie,” Mr Thompson said, referring to Mr Trump's false claims of election fraud.
“Let's be clear. The rioters who tried to rob us of our democracy were propelled here by a lie. As chairman of this committee, I will not give that lie any fertile ground.”
Before the hearing, Kevin McCarthy, the top House Republican, tried to shift blame for the attack on to Ms Pelosi, saying she had been responsible for security arrangements at the Capitol. Mr McCarthy declined to say whether he thought Mr Trump bore any responsibility.
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A member of the National Guard stands outside the east side of the US Capitol on January 7, 2021, in Washington. Getty Images/AFP -
A worker pushes a trash bin at the US Capitol building in Washington. Bloomberg -
Workers clear trash from the East Front of the US Capitol building in Washington. Bloomberg -
A cleaning crew dusts residue from the pedestals of the statues in Statuary Hall inside the US Capitol in Washington. EPA -
National Guard members walk behind a fence installed in front of the US Capitol, a day after supporters of Donald Trump stormed the building. Reuters -
A US Capitol police officer passes in front broken furniture and shattered glass at the Capitol building. Bloomberg -
A worker cleans a copy of the Declaration of Independence at the US Capitol building. Bloomberg -
Workers clean an office at the US Capitol building. Bloomberg -
Members of US Capitol Police inspect a damaged entrance of the Capitol. Getty Images/AFP -
Shattered reinforced glass and debris litter the east steps in the US Capitol in Washington. EPA
