This is a developing story.
Alaskan leaders, including the state’s congressional delegation, publicly condemned the actions of rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and other lawmakers were onsite for a joint session to affirm President-elect Joe Biden’s electoral victory when rioters breached the building.
“My prayers are with the officers that are protecting and defending and who have gone down,” Murkowski tweeted. “Mr. President, tell your supporters to stop the violence. Stop the assault. Now.”
The dangerous destructive activity at the Capitol is continuing to unfold. I, along with other members of the Senate, are secure but the situation is clearly not safe. It is truly mob rule at the moment.— Sen. Lisa Murkowski (@lisamurkowski) January 6, 2021
Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, also decried the violence, calling the action intolerable.
“My staff and I are currently safe and accounted for. Peaceful protest is fundamentally American, but violence must never be tolerated,” Young tweeted. “I call on protestors to comply with Capitol Police, stand down, and leave the Capitol Building so that our Constitutional duties may resume.”
My staff and I are currently safe and accounted for. Peaceful protest is fundamentally American, but violence must never be tolerated. I call on protestors to comply with Capitol Police, stand down, and leave the Capitol Building so that our Constitutional duties may resume.— Rep. Don Young (@repdonyoung) January 6, 2021
Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, voiced his disgust at the actions of the mob.
“I am disgusted by the lawless acts of violence being perpetrated at the Capitol. Disgraceful,” Sullivan tweeted. “A sad day in American history. The world is watching. We are the United States of America. We must be better than this. We ARE better than this.”
I am disgusted by the lawless acts of violence being perpetrated at the Capitol. Disgraceful. A sad day in American history. The world is watching. We are the United States of America. We must be better than this. We ARE better than this.— Sen. Dan Sullivan (@SenDanSullivan) January 6, 2021
Gov. Mike Dunleavy called the Republican party the party of law and order, claiming the extremists did not represent the values of the party, saying violence had no place in America.
Trump supporters participate in a rally Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington. As Congress prepares to affirm President-elect Joe Biden’s victory, thousands of people have gathered to show their support for President Donald Trump and his baseless claims of election fraud. The president is expected to address a rally on the Ellipse, just south of the White House. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
“I’m deeply saddened & appalled to see the violence at the U.S. Capitol today. Acts of violence have no place in our great country,” Dunleavy tweeted. “Republicans are the party of law & order. These few extremists do not represent our values.”
I’m deeply saddened & appalled to see the violence at the U.S. Capitol today. Acts of violence have no place in our great country. Republicans are the party of law & order. These few extremists do not represent our values.— Governor Mike Dunleavy (@GovDunleavy) January 6, 2021
Alaska State Senate Democratic leader Tom Begich, D-Anchorage, also issued a fiery denouncement of both the actions of the rioters and the president who encouraged them.
Trump supporters gesture to U.S. Capitol Police in the hallway outside of the Senate chamber at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
“As I watch the mobs of the President’s supporters storm the U.S. Capitol building, inflamed by a President who has walked away from his oath of office, my heart breaks for our democracy. We are a nation of laws. We are a nation that respects the electoral process,” Begich said in a statement. “Never in our history have we seen violence incited by a sitting President who so despises our American system that he would see it torn down rather than defend it. This is sedition.”
Begich and other state legislators will return to Juneau in days to begin the legislative session. Begich reached back into history to point out the last time the sanctity of the Capitol was breached, it was by a country America was at war with more than two centuries ago.
U.S. Capitol Police with guns drawn stand near a barricaded door as protesters try to break into the House Chamber at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
“This vandalizing and defacing of democracy has no place here,” he said. “Our Capitol has not been occupied by hostile forces, our Congress driven from its halls, since the war of 1812. As Americans, we must defend our constitution and our country from this rejection of our laws. As elected officials, we swore oaths to honor and defend our state and federal constitutions. Ever since we were children, we have stood up and pledged allegiance to our nation,” Begich said. “Now I call on all elected officials, Republicans, Democrats, Independents, non-partisans, and all American citizens to condemn these actions and the actions of those who are inciting violence. We all must make efforts to heal this nation. Now.”
• Contact reporter Michael S. Lockett at (757) 621-1197 or mlockett@juneauempire.com.
