Rep. Demings: ‘True patriots don’t lie. They don’t steal. They don’t cheat..’

Democratic Rep. Val Demings, a former police chief, honored officers who defended the US Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, during her remarks from Capitol Hill.

“As a former police chief, I shall never forget what I witnessed one year ago today. And America should never forget either. I know the Capitol police officers and others took their oath seriously, because I saw them fighting with every ounce of strength, courage, commitment, and energy that they could muster up,” Demings said.

Demings also contrasted the bravery of the police officers on that day to the behavior of some members of Congress.

Washington, DC, Mayor Muriel Bowser and Metropolitan Police Chief Robert Contee marked the first anniversary of the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol by thanking District first-responders who stepped up that day and highlighted the ongoing search for the culprit behind pipe bombs planted in the city one year ago that were interceded.

Contee joined the mayor in thanking first responders, and also highlighted that law enforcement is still searching for leads on a person who planted pipe bombs and has remained at large.

He shared that, of the 700 insurrection-related arrests made so far, many were done using tips and asked for the public to share anything they may know about the attempted pipe bomber.

“Tweet it, put it on your Facebook pages, share it far and wide,” Contee said. “We still need to hold this individual accountable for his or her actions that day.”

Bowser added that the interceded pipe bombs were an early indication of the violence that would occur that day, and noted the importance of protecting the peaceful transfer of power, such as designating joint sessions of Congress as National Special Security events.

At around 2:30 p.m. ET on Jan. 6, 2021, rioters climbed the walls outside the Capitol, clashing with police and pushing past barriers outside the building. The mob gained entry to the building after storming past police, with some smashing windows to get inside.

Shortly before 2:30 p.m. ET, Capitol Police had asked for additional law enforcement assistance.

After entering the Capitol, rioters began roaming the halls of Congress. Many wore red MAGA hats as they took pictures in Statuary Hall, just off the House floor.

“I’ve never been in this House, how about you?” a woman yelled out to the crowd. “That’s right, we own it. We own you!”

Then-Vice President Mike Pence was evacuated from the Senate, along with Republican Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa. As the president pro tempore, Grassley is third in the line of succession to the President, behind Pence and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Police also begin evacuating other lawmakers and staff present for the Electoral College vote affirmation. On their way out, staffers grabbed the boxes of Electoral College ballots to take them to safety.

Shortly after 2:45 p.m. ET, as chaos descended on the Capitol, rioters entered the Senate chamber, with several posing for photos behind the dais.

At 2:48 p.m. ET, Washington, DC, Mayor Muriel Bowser announced a citywide curfew in response to the escalating situation at the Capitol. She set the citywide curfew for Washington from 6 p.m. ET until the following day at 6 a.m. ET.

Police were able to clear the rioters from the Senate floor at around 3:25 p.m. ET. Rioters were squeezed away from the Senate wing of the building and moved toward the Rotunda.

Trump finally dispatched the National Guard at 3:36 p.m. ET. Several hours after rioters breached the Capitol, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany tweeted that Trump had dispatched the National Guard to DC, along with “other federal protective services.”

See a full timeline of Jan. 6, 2021 events here.

Former Vice President Dick Cheney, who was on the House floor with his daughter, Rep. Liz Cheney, this morning, said in a statement today he is “deeply disappointed at the failure of many members of my party to recognize the grave nature of the January 6 attacks and the ongoing threat to our nation.”

The former vice president was seen today talking to House members including House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and Democratic Reps. Adam Schiff, Jim McGovern and Colin Allred.

Read the former vice president’s full statement:

Watch:

A year after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, politicians need to “step up and say the truth” about what happened, Democratic Rep. Joe Neguse said, reflecting on the polarizing environment that persists in politics.

Neguse told CNN that lawmakers of both parties came together during the riot. He said Republican representatives, just like everyone else, were “very worried about their own safety, the safety of their staff, and ultimately, the safety of our republic.”

He said some of his colleagues know better, but continue to “perpetuate these lies and misinformation.”

Neguse praised the Republicans who spoke out against the attacks in the days that followed, notably Rep. Liz Cheney, but added there is still “a long road ahead.”

He said he hopes the Jan. 6 select committee uncovers the truth in their investigation and encouraged members from both parties to participate in the process.

“The environment here, as you know ,couldn’t be more polarizing. To some extent, this existed before Jan. 6, but it has accelerated in ways none of us could imagine,” he said.

Watch more from his interview:

One year ago today, CNN Capitol Hill reporter Daniella Diaz planned to work the overnight shift to assist with covering the election certification process, but in a shocking turn of events, Diaz was inside the Capitol building during the Jan. 6, 2021, riot.

“Today is a day of remembrance,” she said. “I’ve pushed a lot of what happened on Jan. 6 out of my mind to help me cope, but photos helped me recall how I felt that day when Trump supporters stormed the Capitol because they believed the Big Lie, that the 2020 election was stolen from him.”

“It wasn’t just lawmakers in the building — there was staff in the building, those who keep the Capitol running. There were custodians and cooks. There were reporters, like me, who came to the Capitol to do their job and inform the public. Folks with families, folks who have people who love them,” she added.

Ahead of today’s anniversary, Diaz wrote a firsthand account of what happened in a Twitter thread. In it, she recalled seeing a crowd of protesters coming closer and closer to the Capitol building before it was breached. Diaz and staffers were then in lockdown in a room on the House side of the Capitol for “several hours.”

“There was nothing to eat and I was starving. Then hours later police came and told us we only had 5 minutes to evacuate the Capitol,” Diaz recounted on Twitter.

Diaz was then evacuated to a separate Capitol building where “we stayed hours in an undisclosed location until we were cleared to return to the Capitol. I was offered leftover pizza by a Capitol staff member — my first real meal of the day — around 4 pm. I’m still incredibly grateful for that, otherwise I wouldn’t have eaten that day.”

Diaz stayed at the Capitol until the election was certified:

You can read her full account here:

The group of lawmakers who were trapped in the House gallery on Jan. 6, who call themselves the gallery group, have partnered with World Central Kitchen to give lunches to workers at the Capitol including Capitol police. 

Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips told CNN said 800 Capitol police and Capitol staff were invited to the lunch.

He said they are “unheralded, underappreciated or unrecognized for what they do every day – but particularly on that day – to save us, to save the Capitol, and to give us another day to do what’s right.”

Phillips added that Jan. 6, 2021, was an awful day not just for members of Congress, but also for those who worked at the Capitol.

Former Vice President Dick Cheney was on the House floor with his daughter Republican Rep. Liz Cheney ahead of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s remarks on the one-year anniversary of the Jan. 6 Capitol attack.

They were in a group talking to members including House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and Democratic Reps. Adam Schiff, Jim McGovern and Colin Allred.

“We were very honored by his being there. He has a right to be on the floor as a former member of the House. I was happy to welcome him back, and to congratulate him on the courage,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said of Dick Cheney’s presence in the House chamber today.

She declined to answer a question about her thoughts on no other Republicans being present in chamber today, saying, “You’ll have to ask them.”

Liz Cheney is vice chair of the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi honored law enforcement officers and congressional staff who battled rioters during the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack.

“That day and the days after, they were the defenders of our democracy and their courage and patriotism remain an inspiration,” Pelosi said.

She also lauded lawmakers for following through on their duty to certify the Electoral College vote in the early hours of the morning after the riot.

“There have been continued assaults on our democracy, undermining the sanctity of the vote and the integrity of our elections, which are the basis of our democracy. Let us be true to vision of our founders, who brilliantly established our democracy and made it a model for the world,” Pelosi said.

She acknowledged fallen officers and held a moment of silence.