Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp spoke Wednesday afternoon condemning the protests at the U.S. Capitol, and has said the GA National Guard is ready.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp spoke Wednesday afternoon calling the protests at the United States Capitol “a disgrace” and “un-American”, and stressing the Peach State is prepared for similar threats.
Kemp extended the previous executive order that activated the Georgia National Guard. That will continue to be in place Monday, and they will be called up as needed, he said. But he also said he, “feels confident they will not.”
“In Georgia, we had peaceful protests all summer long allowing people to let people let their voice be heard on an array of issues we had in our state and our country going on at that time,” Kemp said. “But we certainly did not allow anarchy and will not allow that now in the state of Georgia.
“It in unimaginable that we have people in our state and our country that have been threatening police officers, and breaking in to government buildings. This is not the Georgia way, and it is not the way of our country. An individual being shot during the middle of these activities, and I don’t even know the details of that, while they were there is unimaginable.”
As Georgia begins its legislative session on Monday, Kemp said he has discussed with Lieutenant Governor Georgia Duncan and Speaker of the House David Ralston on the safety protocols that will be in place at the state Capitol and on the grounds.
“We’ve also been in discussion with members of the minority party, so they are clear on that and their members are comfortable as we start this legislative process,” Kemp said. We will move forward together.”
Kemp addressed those who have asked for a special session, saying they, “can now see what that would have looked like.”
He also said that Rudy Giuliani saying, “trial by combat,” was, “simply outrageous, and there is no place for that in our nation.”
Duncan said he joins Kemp, “as strongly and as vehemently as [he] can condemning the rioting and violence in our U.S. Capitol and other places across this country.
“Today is an incredibly sobering reminder of how delicate our democracy truly is,” Duncan said. “It is also a reminder of how dangerous it is when people in power act as if they were more important than that democracy.”
Duncan said he calls on President Donald Trump to speak with, “all the clarity in the world as to exactly what Americans should do at this point in Washington, D.C.”
“They should exit the Capitol peacefully, and they should allow democracy to once again shine,” Duncan said. “I want to speak directly to Georgians, every Georgian who can hear my voice: put down your differences, put down your partisanship and pick up your freedom.”
Ralston echoed their sentiments, and said, “this is a very sad day.”
“Shocking images we have seen from our nation’s Capitol today are indefensible, un-American and frankly, heartbreaking,” he said. “I stand here with our governor and lieutenant governor in support of the members of the Georgia general assembly to condemn in the strongest possible terms these acts of lawlessness, acts which are despicable and which there are no possible justification. It is time for this to stop. Americans must not act this way.”
No matter which candidate wins or loses, an election is no reason to jeopardize the safety of fellow citizens, Ralston said.
“We are a nation of laws,” he said. “We are a nation structured by a constitution. And most important, we are one nation under God. We are brothers and sisters blessed by God to live in the greatest and freest nation on Earth. I pray that tomorrow we find ourselves blessed to live yet another day in this great country. I pray that we can begin the work of reuniting and rededicating ourselves to being that one nation under God that in divisible. I pray for our United States of America.”
Other Georgia officials commented on the protests happening at the U.S. Capitol.
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and his staff were escorted out of the Georgia Capitol building Wednesday afternoon after supporters of President Donald Trump attempted to enter the building to deliver written grievances over the Nov. 3 election, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
This action comes after a small, peaceful “Stop the Steal” rally was held outside the Georgia Capitol, with some of those protesters carrying assault rifles, according to the AJC — a stark contrast to the violent protests in Washington D.C. on Wednesday. The group included about two dozen members of the far-right militia movement as well as former Ku Klux Klan leader Chester Doles.
Protesters stormed their way into the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday to halt the Electoral College certification of Joe Biden as the next president of the United States. The move overwhelmed Capitol Police, who evacuated members of Congress as violence escalated.
Members of Congress from both parties implored President Donald Trump to use his influence on Twitter to quell the violence. One person was treated for a gunshot wound at the Capitol, a Washington, D.C., paramedic told the local Fox News affiliate. CNN cited two sources saying the woman was in critical condition.
Trump, who had told the teeming crowd of protesters at a morning rally that he would never concede, seemed to capitulate to critics who said he had fueled the insurgents and later told his supporters to “go home in peace.”
“This was a fraudulent election,” he said in a tweeted video at 4:17 p.m. ET, “but we cannot play into the hands of these people.”
But the president was castigated for telling his supporters, “We love you. You’re very special.”
President-Elect Biden said in a televised broadcast around the same time that the chaos unfolding on Capitol Hill was “disorder, not dissent.” He said the country’s democracy has been under unprecedented assault and described Wednesday’s chaos as a “God-awful display.”
“The scenes of chaos at the Capitol, do not reflect a true America or who we are,” Biden said. “America is so much better than what we are seeing today.”
Biden repeatedly urged Trump to “step up” to calm the nation’s capital.
