US President Donald Trump has admitted his presidential term is ending and promised an “orderly transition on January 20th” a day after his supporters stormed the US Capitol in an attempt to overturn the results of the election.
“Even though I totally disagree with the outcome of the election, and the facts bear me out, nevertheless there will be an orderly transition on January 20th,” Trump said in a statement posted by his advisor, despite the fact that his claims of election fraud are unfounded.
Four people died after the mob broke into the Capitol while Congress met to certify Joe Biden’s win including a woman among the protesters who was shot and three other people who suffered “medical emergencies” related to the breach, police said.
Lawmakers had been forced to flee the building and the Congressional session did not resume until some six hours after the protesters entered the building.
The protesters had dispersed by the evening as police used tear gas and percussion grenades to clear the grounds of the US Capitol. The mayor of Washington DC issued a 6:00pm curfew in the city.
The protesters had been at a rally in the city earlier in the day where they were egged on by President Donald Trump who urged supporters to march to the Capitol.
The US president has spent weeks claiming the election was fraudulent and being stolen by Democrats despite providing no evidence to support his claims. Now, Twitter and Facebook have temporarily blocked the US president after he continued to post false accusations about the election amid the violence.
When Congress reconvened its session, Republican Senator Mitch McConnell said lawmakers would “not be intimidated” and called the event a “failed insurrection”.
