STORY: Three years on, Capitol riot continues to fuel U.S. political turmoil
SHOOTING TIME: file
DATELINE: Jan. 5, 2024
LENGTH: 00:01:15
LOCATION: Washington D.C.
CATEGORY: POLITICS

SHOTLIST:
1. various of supporters of Donald Trump broke into the Capitol building on Jan. 6, 2021 (file)
2. various of the U.S. Capitol building (file)
3. various of the U.S. Supreme Court (file)
4. various of Donald Trump (file)

STORYLINE:

Saturday marks the three-year anniversary of the U.S. Capitol riot.

Three years on, the riot's fallout continues to fuel political turmoil in the country, which could further intensify divisions between the Democrats and the Republicans.

On Jan. 6, 2021, thousands of supporters of then President Donald Trump violently broke into the Capitol building and interrupted the certifying process of the 2020 presidential election, after Trump refused to concede the election result.

The deadly attack killed five people and injured hundreds more. Over 1,200 individuals have been charged with federal crimes over the riot.

Democrats refer to the events as a serious attack on U.S. democracy, while Republicans contend that Jan. 6 was simply a protest that got out of hand.

Three years later, the fallout is still palpable. Some U.S. states have pressed to keep Trump off the ballot in 2024.

Colorado Supreme Court's ruling two weeks ago marked the first time a U.S. state court has agreed that Trump should be disqualified from the 2024 presidential election.

Trump on Wednesday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to invalidate the ruling, and the Supreme Court on Friday agreed to consider it, setting up a historic case ahead of the presidential election.

The Jan. 6 events "will inevitably play a role this year," in the lead-up to the U.S. presidential elections, Christopher Galdieri, a political science professor at Saint Anselm College told Xinhua.

Galdieri said, if, as seems likely, Trump is the Republican nominee, GOP officials will have a powerful incentive to downplay Jan. 6 and embrace Trump.

Greg Cusack, a former member of the Iowa House of Representatives, told Xinhua that the Jan. 6 Capitol riot will continue to fuel U.S. political turmoil three years later, and he is concerned about more violence in this country.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Washington D.C., U.S.
(XHTV)