Rep. Raskin's Family At Capitol When It Was Overrun By Rioters

SILVER SPRING, MD — Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) invited his daughter and son-in-law to the U.S. Capitol Wednesday to see the peaceful transfer of power as President-elect Joe Biden was certified the winner of November's election.

Instead, the family — reeling from the death of Raskin's son — lived through mayhem when the Capitol was overrun by pro-Trump rioters.

"We experienced a terrible family tragedy in the last week, and so I had one of my daughters with me — and a son-in-law with me — because we wanted to be together," Raskin said in an interview with C-SPAN Wednesday. "I thought I could show them the peaceful transfer of power in the United States of America."

.@RepRaskin: "This is an attack on the government of the United States." pic.twitter.com/o3LzErnLZO
— CSPAN (@cspan) January 6, 2021

Raskin — whose district encompasses parts of Montgomery, Frederick, and Carroll counties — announced the death of his 25-year-old son Tommy on New Year's Eve. The second-year Harvard Law School student had died by suicide.

RELATED: 'A Radiant Light:' Grieving Raskin Family Remembers Late Son

In his interview with CSPAN on Wednesday, the Democratic lawmaker said his daughter and son-in-law were not with him in the House chamber when the Capitol was breached. Raskin said he was worried about their safety.

"What was going through my mind was their safety," he said. "I just wanted to make sure we could get back together."

Raskin told C-SPAN he eventually reunited with his daughter and son-in-law, and that everyone was safe.

The process of counting Electoral College votes is traditionally a ceremonial and routine one. But Wednesday's pro-Trump rally forced lawmakers to halt the Electoral College's certification proceedings and to evacuate the chambers.

With Trump's encouragement, thousands of right-wing supporters descended on Washington, D.C., to back his baseless claims of election fraud. The protest on Wednesday — which coincided with the congressional vote to certify the 2020 presidential election — soon turned violent as Trump supporters pushed past barricades and stormed the Capitol.

The chaos that unfolded in D.C. prompted the city's mayor, Muriel Bowser (D), and Maryland's governor, Larry Hogan (R), to call in the National Guard. Other counties in Maryland — including Montgomery and Prince George's — also deployed dozens of police officers to help law enforcement restore law and order.

Four people died as a result of the mayhem, according to officials. One woman was fatally shot inside the Capitol. The three other deaths were reported around the Capitol grounds. D.C.'s police chief said the victims — a woman and two men — suffered fatal medical emergencies, but did not elaborate.

Later Wednesday night, members of Congress reconvened to count the Electoral College votes. Formal objections to the electoral votes of Arizona and Pennsylvania — two key battleground states won by Biden — each halted the count for a time. However, a mostly unanimous Senate and House rejected objections to counting Arizona's 11 electoral votes, despite an effort spearheaded by Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona and Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas.

Speaking on the House floor, Raskin said lawmakers "are not here ... to vote for the candidate we want" but are here to "recognize the candidate people actually voted for in the states."

Longtime Trump ally Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina urged colleagues to forget objecting to the election results, which he said made Biden "the legitimate president of the United States."

"Enough is enough," he said.

The same process occurred following objections to Pennsylvania's 20 electoral votes, backed by Rep. Scott Perry of Pennsylvania and Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri, but both chambers ultimately rejected those objections as well.

SEE ALSO:

• Trump Mob Attacks Capitol; 4 Deaths; 69 Arrests; FBI Seeks Tips
  
• Maryland Police, County Officers Deployed For DC Protest
  
• Elrich Urges Residents To Steer Clear Of Pro-Trump Rallies In DC
  
• Biden Election Certified After A Day Of Violence On Capitol Hill