After pro-Donald Trump terrorists attacked and vandalized the U.S. Capitol in an attempted coup on Jan 6, a variety of local officials issued statements on Jan. 7.
Governor JB Pritzker: “As the heart of our democracy was under siege and blood was literally being spilled in our most sacred halls, Donald Trump was praising the attackers. There are real questions about what efforts the president made to protect our Congress or what obstructions he committed that has prevented the ending of the siege.
“There is no doubt in my mind that his efforts to encourage a coup represent high treason to this democracy, our Constitution, and all Americans. He poses a danger to our nation. He must be impeached and removed from office immediately. And every person in a position of public trust, elected or otherwise, who enabled the systematic dismantling of our democratic norms and failed to speak up or take action bears some responsibility for the culmination of four years of spreading bile.”
Mayor Lori Lightfoot: “President Trump and his enablers incited this violence. Shame on every elected official in Congress and elsewhere who fomented this anti-democratic insurrection by extremists. This is not democracy. This is a disgrace.”
Senator Dick Durbin: “President Trump incited his followers to violence. They stormed the Capitol and stopped the House and Senate in session.
“This shameful chapter in our nation’s history is the real legacy of Donald Trump. On January 20, we can begin the process of healing the wounds of this country and start to put this national nightmare behind us.”
Senator Tammy Duckworth: “What happened in the Capitol yesterday was a painful reminder that democracy is fragile and it’s up to every one of us—elected officials and citizens alike—to work to keep it. It’s time we get back to the work of creating a more perfect Union, spend less time fighting each other and more time fighting this deadly pandemic. Thankfully, in just 13 days, Joe Biden will be sworn in as President of the United States and Donald Trump will leave the White House in shame.”
Congressman Bobby Rush, 1st District: Rush called the Jan. 6 activities “nothing short of a murderous insurrection and armed coup incited by Donald Trump and executed by his diehard supporters. These actions are an attack on the U.S. Constitution, our democratic institutions, and the United States, as a country. This sort of behavior is repugnant to our democracy, pure and simple.”
Concerning Trump, Rush said, “I have long realized that you can expect nothing else from a weak, insecure, power-hungry megalomaniac like him.
“I also call on the Committee on House Administration to initiate an immediate investigation as to how the Capitol was so easily breached and call on law enforcement to diligently pursue criminal prosecution against all those who participated in or incited today’s violence.
“These terrorist acts will not silence the voice of the people.”
Congresswoman Marie Newman, 3rd District: “Let me be crystal clear – yesterday’s attack was the direct result of the dangerous, inciteful rhetoric that Donald Trump and Republican members of the House and Senate have been spewing for months. Those members need to be held accountable, which is why I signed on to Congresswoman Cori Bush’s (MO-1) latest resolution to ensure they will be.
“As for President Trump, this nation does not have the luxury of waiting two more weeks for him to leave office. The 25th Amendment needs to be invoked immediately. He needs to be impeached immediately. He needs to resign immediately. The safety of this country depends on it.”
Congressman Jesus “Chuy” Garcia, 4th District: “Donald Trump encouraged a violent assault on the U.S. Capitol to prevent Congress from exercising out constitutional duties. I voted to impeach Trump once before, and I would do it again. He should be removed immediately.”
Congressman Danny K. Davis, 7th District: “I wish I could say that I was totally surprised by the events at the Capitol, but in truth we have been heading inexorably to this moment for the past five years. This a shameful moment in our history, but we have come too far as a people, we have achieved too much, we have overcome too much to go back.
“Our nation and the world community have watched in horror and shock as the Capitol was invaded by a mob intent on reversing the unbroken tradition of a peaceful transition of power from one administration to the next egged on by the highest government office in the land.
“I remain confident about our future as a nation and as a Congress and our ability to reject authoritarianism and commit ourselves to the nuts and bolts of democratic government.
“I support the immediate removal of Donald J. Trump from the office of President of the United States by impeachment and/or via the 25th Amendment.”