Episode 119: Historic and Violent Break-In at the U.S. Capitol

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Paige: You are listening to “Coffee with Gringos.” I’m Paige Sutherland.

Ian: I'm Ian Kennedy.

Paige: And so today we are going to be talking about some news in the US that is really groundbreaking. It's something that's never happened before and honestly, it's pretty scary. There was a huge mob mentality protest that stormed the US Capitol, and it was over whether Trump won or lost the election. So, we're going to talk a little bit today about what happened, what it means, our reaction to it. So again, listeners if you get lost, check out that audio guide and transcript online. Ian, last week protesters literally took over the US Capitol. What were you thinking when you saw that on the news?

Ian: Six days into 2021 and we already had such a crazy event. It was pretty wild to see, to follow. I was working from home here and I scan the news every couple of hours just to see what's going on. I look at a picture and I see a guy with face paint, no shirt, he's wearing animal furs all over him, and they're inside the US Capitol. And I thought, what the hell is going on? So that's when all the news started circulating about how Trump gave his speech in Washington D.C. to his supporters and basically incited a riot by saying, we need to “stop the steal”—referring to the stolen election. So, he had not yet conceded that he officially lost and so saying to his supporters we can't give up so easily, we can't back down. Basically, he encouraged the supporters to go to Capitol Hill and protest against the Electoral College results. So that was kind of the impetus for that, it was the government—Congress—was officially announcing that Biden won the Electoral College and he would be the new president. And so, a couple of hours later, we saw all of the protesters—which, I think, fairly we can call rioters now—they all arrived at the Capitol and pretty easily, it seemed like, were able to break through the Capitol Police, through the barriers, and were smashing windows, broke their way into the US Capitol building which is one of the most important buildings in the country, and the police couldn't really do much about it. They came in, they started taking memorabilia, taking pictures, breaking into Congress members’ offices and Congress members had to go into hiding with security. It's something that we in the US have never seen before. For everyone, it was pretty shocking. Everyone stopped in their tracks to see what the hell was going on. So, what was your reaction when all this was going on since you were up there?

Paige: As you said, just to give our listeners a little bit of context, how our election works is a little different than a lot of other countries where we have a democracy where everyone votes but then we have this kind of obscure Electoral College of electors that have the say of like who actually wins the election. But Congress has to agree on whether that vote was valid or not. And so basically on Wednesday what they were doing was saying, okay, the election in Georgia was valid and Arizona was valid and Michigan and going through each state and so Republicans and Democrats had to have a majority of whether they agreed the election was fair. And so, it was kind of Trump's last real effort to say that the election wasn't fair and to change the results. And it wasn't looking in his favor so that was I think why he incited this kind of chaos to stop the vote because he knew that it wasn't going to go in his favor. And it didn't. You know, they went after this riot, all the lawmakers went back to Congress and voted and officially declared that Joe Biden won the US presidential election and still Trump is not conceding. He's saying he'll leave peacefully but the election was stolen. So, it's kind of this crazy mentality and it's a little scary. It's kind of like he's a dictator because this was almost like a coup like they were literally trying to stop democracy by not letting our lawmakers, who we vote into office, to vote on whether the election was fair. Which is also crazy because all the states were that were being contested, there were lawsuits so they had to go through all the ballots, they really triple checked to make sure every state held a fair election. So, it was vetted and you had long- term, hard-right Republicans that were saying “Trump, let go. You lost. The election was fair.” And if we are going to stop this process, we don't have a democracy. That was what you were hearing a lot on the floor was that these efforts are against what our country believes in. The people voted and you lost. And that's that.

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Ian: There were a lot of double standards that happened along with this protest. We saw a difference in how different people are treated by the police when it comes to protests and riots. So, if we compare it to a lot of the Black Lives Matter protests that happened earlier in the year with George Floyd, we saw a lot of police in riot gear, there were so many police guarding the US Capitol building during those protests which weren't near as violent in terms of breaking into a government building. And we saw them shooting tear gas, beating protesters, who for the most part, were peacefully protesting. Of course, you have some bad eggs that were looting but, in general, these people were peaceful and they were treated with violence, with force. I mean, Trump said, “Once the looting starts, the shooting starts.” Regarding the protesters on last Wednesday, he said something along the lines of “You are very special people. Go home now. I know how you feel.” So, people just feel like okay, what would happen if these rioters were black? Would they've been treated the same way with the police? Just open the gates, let people inside the building, taking selfies. I've seen pictures of the police taking selfies with these rioters. Probably not, they probably would have been treated with a lot more violence. They wouldn't have made their way into the Capitol; they probably would have killed a lot of people. So, people are saying, look, this right here, this just shows the difference in privileges that exist in the country and the police treat people differently depending on the situation. So, I think a lot of people are of course shocked about what happened but they're also frustrated that we can really visually see two different examples of how people are treated.

Paige: I agree, it was kind of appalling to me that this vote in Congress was on the books, they always have to approve the election through Congress. Everyone knew about it and this protest was well known. Everyone knew that people were going to show up that day and protest the election. Why weren’t there dozens and dozens of police officers protecting the Capitol so that they could have this vote safely? There's poor planning but then you have all these Black Lives Matter protests that have so many police there, that it's like what? Why did you not think this was going to end the way that it did? It was the fact that they, these normal people were able to take over the US Capitol means they were not prepared at all. They did not have the police presence that they should have even though they knew that it was going to be kind of a crazy day. These protesters have been angry since the election so it's not surprising them breaking glass and storming the US Capitol. I mean, they were pissed off. It was well known. So, yeah, it was like a very stark difference from the Black Lives Matters to how they treated these white, mostly male, protesters are like, oh, they're just crazy people. We don't need to arrest them. There were a few arrests, even though breaking into the US Capitol is a felony. That’s trespassing on federal property, breaking federal property. I mean they damaged statues that are centuries old. This was not a normal protest.

Ian: And so, I think that's another thing that's frustrating. It's like when black people protest, it's revolutionary, it's dangerous. And when white people protest, it's patriotic. That's the difference in the rhetoric that we see in the US when we talk about these protests. So, people are frustrated by the way things are defined, the way people are treated.

Paige: Like you said earlier, the rhetoric of the president, I mean, you had over five hundred lawmakers that had to hide under desks and wear tear gas masks and being escorted by bodyguards because they were unsafe. And yet, the president's like, “We love you all. Go home. Good fight today but it's over. Go home now.” It's like, what? But when you had him address the Black Lives Matter, he's like “There are a bunch of thugs, they're criminals. “So, the rhetoric is just very, very different and you see that with Twitter. They blocked his account because what he's saying isn't helping. He's encouraging them and kind of allowing this behavior to be acceptable. So, I thought that was interesting that Twitter was like yeah, you're done. You can't talk anymore.

Ian: Yeah, it’s like grounding a kid. Okay, you’re grounded for a while—you can't use the internet for a while. Even more than just inciting a riot and having this happen, five people died in this event. This wasn't a bloodless event. This isn't just something that happened and oh, it caused a lot of damage and they broke into some buildings. People lost their lives because of this.

Paige: It was pretty hard to watch and I remember listening to the footage of people who are inside the Capitol and they had to barricade the door with desks and hide under their chairs, and you could see photos, these people if they could have broken, I don't know what they were going to do but it wasn't going to be good.  They were looking for blood. They weren't just there to loot.

Ian: Yeah, honestly, we're pretty lucky that no one else died, a congress member didn't get killed or other rioters didn't get killed. And we've seen it a lot of times in other countries, especially here in Latin America. It was funny talking to a few friends down here because they said okay, this is your guys’ first time? Kind of like oh, this the first time you had a riot break into the capitol building?  Because it's happened in other places here and so I think it just goes to show that the US is more vulnerable than the image we put out.

Paige: We, I guess, didn't take Trump serious enough. He just has this strong rhetoric and we just let him speak and just ignored them and his loyal supporters who were at that protest didn't. They used that as fuel. They took everything that he said about the election being fake and stolen and we need to take it back and they literally took it to heart. And so, I think we were naive, I guess, not to hold him more accountable. You are the president of one of the largest nations in the world, you can't just say whatever you want to people because people will listen because you are the President of the United States. And so, I think we were so used to presidents being careful with what they say that then when Trump came, we were like he's a clown, no one will listen to him. And as we saw, people do. So, I think that was pretty scary. What do you think about, now that it's been over there's a lot of calls to impeach him? And technically, Trump will be out of office on the 20th so not that much more time. What do you think about that? Do you think it's worth trying to go down that road or just wait until he has to leave on the 20th?

Ian: It doesn't surprise me at all that people are calling for his impeachment because of these actions. I think a lot of it is more, at this point, probably just for publicity or just to make a point to try to make him feel guilty or try to put that onus on him. Do I think it's worth it? No, I don't think it's worth it. I think if he's going to be out in two weeks, how many times have we tried to impeach him and it's never worked? I don't think in the span of two weeks, anything is going to be able to happen. Hopefully, he's just going to leave, and we can just be done with him for now.

Paige: Yeah, I know. I almost feel like this was such a lesson learned that on Inauguration Day, obviously, tenfold more police presence is necessary but maybe really limit the public. Maybe don't invite the public. Maybe it's only lawmakers and their families and so forth, because A. we are still in a global pandemic—we shouldn't be meeting in big crowds and then B. like as we saw last week, it's just isn't really worth it. We can all watch it on the television, we don't need to be there.  I think everyone's pretty nervous about what's going to happen on the 20th given what happened last week. It is still mind-boggling to me that even after all this, Trump is still like “I didn't lose.” And I agree, I think it's a circus with this impeachment stuff that it's just, he's going to be out in a few days. It's not worth going through that process again. But I do think, I guess, calling for it is just more powerful as a statement to show you are the president, your words matter, you should be held accountable. You can't just say stuff like this. People listen to you and look at what you did.

Ian: Yeah, it's been interesting.

Paige: Good start to 2021, right?

Ian: Yeah, only can go up from here, right? That’s what we hope for.

Paige: It's funny, we did an episode two weeks ago about how 2020 started off with raging wildfires, and look what happened and our 2021 started off as an almost US coup.

Ian: We can get the list going already. We'll start it out with that one. A coup attempt within the first couple weeks of the year. Great start.

Paige: Well, listeners, everyone, I hope that this will be a quiet time the next week or so before we have a new president in the US and then hopefully, when that happens, we won't have to do any episodes on US politics because things will be normal and quiet again.

Ian: That would be a nice break from all this craziness, so let's hope for it.

Paige: So, listeners as always if you get lost, check out that audio guide and transcript online. Thanks for listening.

Ian: We'll see you next time.

Paige: “Coffee with Gringos” was brought to you by Dynamic English, where you can learn English simply by using it. If you’re interested in taking classes or just want to learn more, go to our website at dynamicenglish.cl. Thanks for listening.

Key Vocabulary, Phrases & Slang:

 1.     groundbreaking (adjective): brand new or historic.

a.     The groundbreaking event happened last week.

2.     to storm (verb): to move forcefully into a particular place.

a.     The rioters stormed the Capitol building by breaking windows and doors.

3.     to scan (verb): to look quickly at something for important information.

a.     I like to scan the news during the day for anything new that is happening.

4.     to circulate (verb): to move and spread from place to place or person to person.

a.     The news began to circulate quickly on social media.

5.     to incite (verb): to encourage or promote someone to act in a violent or illegal way.

a.     The riots were incited by President Trump during his public speech.

6.     riot (noun): violent and illegal protesting by a group of people.

a.     This was the first time that a riot has taken over the US Capitol building.

7.     impetus (noun): the force or cause of something starting or happening.

a.     The public speech from the president was the impetus for the riots.

8.     memorabilia (noun): important historical object.

a.      The rioters stole famous memorabilia from the building.

9.     to stop in one’s tracks (idiom): to stop what you are doing to focus on something that is currently happening.

a.     The news stopped me in my tracks and I couldn’t stop listening to the reports.

10.  obscure (adjective): unclear or uncertain.

a.     The police plans for securing the area were obscure.

11.  coup (noun): the violent, illegal, and sudden seizure of government control or power.

a.     The riot is being viewed as a coup attempt.

12.  vetted (adjective): carefully examined and investigated.

a.     The election results have been vetted and are ready to be confirmed.

13.  double standard (noun): a rule or principle which is unfairly applied in different ways to different people or groups.

a.     The double standard of police treatment towards protesters is making the public angry.

14.  bad egg (noun, slang): person doing violent and illegal things.

a.     There were a lot of bad eggs who participated in the riots.

15.  to loot (verb): to steal things during a riot.

a.     The rioters began looting the inside of the Capitol.

16.  appalling (adjective): shocking; horrific; disgusting.

a.     The actions of the rioters were appalling.

17.  on the books (idiom): registered; confirmed.

a.     With the election results on the books, it’s ridiculous that some people are still fighting against the results.

18.  pissed off (adjective): angry; furious.

a.     He was very pissed off to hear what had happened.

19.  stark (adjective): clear; noticeable.

a.     There is a stark difference in the way that police treat different protesters.

20.  felony (noun): a serious crime punishable by prison time.

a.     Breaking into a federal building is a felony.

21.  rhetoric (noun): speaking or writing communication in order to be persuasive or impressive a certain audience.

a.     Trump’s rhetoric of never giving up on the results influenced his supporters.

22.  thug (noun): violent criminal.

a.     The thugs pushed past the police and entered the building.

23.  to barricade (verb): to block or defend all entrances into a place for protection.

a.     The Congress members had to barricade themselves inside the building.

24.  to take something to heart (idiom): to understand or accept something literally or seriously.

a.     The supporters took Trump’s words to heart and decided to riot the building.

25.  naïve (adjective): lacking experience or judgment; innocent; unaware.

a.     We were naïve to think that something like this wouldn’t happen.  

26.  to impeach (verb): to charge the president with misconduct which could result in forcing him or her to leave office.

a.     There are several government members wanting to impeach Trump for his actions.

27.  onus (noun): responsibility or duty.

a.     The onus has been put on Trump because of the speech he gave before the riots.

28.  mind-boggling (adjective): shocking; surprising; overwhelming.

a.     It’s mind-boggling that there weren’t more police present to defend the Capitol building.