Bill Clinton: Trump lit the match for Capitol violence

Former President Clinton on Wednesday blamed President Trump for the riots that rocked the nation after protesters stormed the Capitol as a joint session of Congress was attempting to certify the Electoral College results for President-elect Joe Biden.

In the wake of the violent mob, Clinton said “the match was lit by Donald Trump.”

“Today we faced an unprecedented assault on our Capitol, our Constitution, and our country,” he wrote in a series of tweets on Wednesday evening. “The assault was fueled by more than four years of poison politics spreading deliberate misinformation, sowing distrust in our system, and pitting Americans against one another.”

“The match was lit by Donald Trump and his most ardent enablers, including many in Congress, to overturn the results of an election he lost. The election was free, the count was fair, the result is final. We must complete the peaceful transfer of power our Constitution mandates,” he continued.

Clinton went on to say that he has always believed that the country “is made up of good, decent people” and that he still does.

But he added, if “that’s who we really are, we must reject today’s violence, turn the page, and move forward together—honoring our Constitution, remaining committed to a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.”

The match was lit by Donald Trump and his most ardent enablers, including many in Congress, to overturn the results of an election he lost.

The election was free, the count was fair, the result is final. We must complete the peaceful transfer of power our Constitution mandates.

— Bill Clinton (@BillClinton) January 7, 2021

If that’s who we really are, we must reject today’s violence, turn the page, and move forward together—honoring our Constitution, remaining committed to a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.

— Bill Clinton (@BillClinton) January 7, 2021

Clinton joined the remaining three living former presidents in his comments condemning the violence at the Capitol.

Thousands of Trump’s supporters came to the District this week to protest the presidential election results after the president urged them on Twitter to do so as Congress geared up to formally affirm Biden’s victory in the November race. 

“Statistically impossible to have lost the 2020 Election. Big protest in D.C. on January 6th. Be there, will be wild!” he wrote to his millions of Twitter followers last month in a post in which he continued to cast doubt on the legitimacy of the presidential election as he sought to overturn results in the race.

And then in remarks to his supporters on Wednesday, Trump also appeared to indicate to his supporters that he would march with them to the Capitol.

“We’re going to walk down to the Capitol and we’re going to cheer on our brave senators and congressmen and women,” Trump said at the time, according to Reuters, while also calling on supporters “to fight.”

The Capitol was placed on lockdown temporarily on Wednesday after droves of rioters were seen storming the building’s grounds, some clashing with law enforcement. It was several hours before the building was declared secured by staff.

At least four people died amid the rioting on Wednesday. The Metropolitan Police Department said at least 14 officers were also injured during the violence and 52 people were arrested. 

On late Wednesday, Congress met again to formally affirm Biden won the presidential election. 

Trump also on early Thursday acknowledged his term in office was coming to an end in a statement and said “there will be an orderly transition on January 20th,” though he also said he still “totally” disagrees “with the outcome of the election.”