US military leaders in Africa reassure troops after Capitol riots: ‘Our system of government is strong’

U.S. military leaders in Africa sought to reassure their troops Thursday after supporters of President Trump sieged the U.S. Capitol the day before in a violent bid to overturn the presidential election.

“America has withstood much greater and graver challenges in the past, our Constitution remains our bedrock, and our system of government is strong, resilient and will prevail,” U.S. Africa Command (Africom) chief Gen. Stephen Townsend and the command’s senior enlisted leader, Sgt. Maj. Richard Thresher, said in a statement addressed to members of their force who “may be concerned about the event we saw unfold back home.”

“The American people expect, and need, us to stay steady and keep clear eyes on our duty — and we will,” they added in the statement posted to Africom’s social media accounts.

Joint statement from @USArmy Gen. Stephen Townsend and @USMC Sgt. Maj. Richard Thresher: pic.twitter.com/QPnM8wMxgW

— US AFRICOM (@USAfricaCommand) January 7, 2021

The statement, which appears to be the first such one from a U.S. military command since Wednesday’s riots, come after a mob breached the Capitol while Congress was meeting to certify Joe Biden’s presidential win, forcing lawmakers to halt the proceedings and shelter in secure undisclosed locations.

The entire D.C. National Guard was activated to help restore order, and governors from around the country are also sending help from their own National Guards.

Lawmakers and other political leaders from both sides of aisles placed blame for the violence squarely on Trump, who for weeks has spread false conspiracies of widespread fraud in the election and lied about the ability of Vice President Pence and Congress to overturn the results during Wednesday’s Electoral College vote counting. At a rally Wednesday morning, Trump explicitly urged supporters to march on Congress afterward.

Among those who spoke out after the attack were Trump’s former Pentagon chiefs, James Mattis and Mark Esper, and former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Joseph Dunford. Mattis, in particular, explicitly blamed Trump for “fomenting” the violence.

Acting Defense Secretary Christopher Miller put out a statement Wednesday on the National Guard deployment saying that “our people are sworn to defend the Constitution and our democratic form of government and they will act accordingly.”

But Miller, who was installed by Trump after he fired Esper in the wake of the election, has not issued a statement similar to Africom’s reassuring the force.