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- Supporters of President Trump clashed with police and at least six were arrested Tuesday night.
- Supporters gathered to protest the presidential election results ahead of Wednesday’s vote in Congress to certify those results.
- The protests came ahead of a larger rally scheduled for Wednesday, where Trump is expected to speak.
- Trump has told his supporters that the vote in Congress is a chance to overturn the results, even if it isn’t.
- Visit the Business Insider homepage for more stories.
Supporters of President Donald Trump clashed with police, leading to the arrest of at least six of them, as they protested the results of the US presidential election ahead of a Congressional vote to certify the result.
Supporters gathered in Washington, DC on Tuesday night ahead of Wednesday’s meeting where Congress is to vote to certify President-elect Joe Biden’s victory in the November election.
Images captured by Brendan Gutenschwager, a freelance journalist, show protesters and officers fighting. He said it showed Trump supporters trying to “rush the line.”
You can watch the video here:
—Brendan Gutenschwager (@BGOnTheScene) January 6, 2021
According to Mediaite, the protesters started to verbally attack the police saying, “You have lost both sides of your support.
Protesters rallied to oppose the election results, supporting Trump’s baseless claims that there was widespread election fraud and that he was the real winner.
They gathered at the city’s Freedom Plaza, where speakers called the coronavirus outbreak “bogus” and repeated conspiracy theories about Democrats filling the ballot box.
Trump supporters gathered near the BLM Plaza to protest in Washington DC, United States, Jan.5, 2021.
Tayfun Coskun / Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
He sank into clashes, with police appearing as pepper spray protesters.
Washington DC Metropolitan Police officers said six arrests were made as of 9 p.m., NBC News reported.
The charges included assaulting a police officer, common assault, carrying firearms without a license and possession of an unregistered firearm.
Trump appeared to approve of the protesters earlier Tuesday, before the clashes began. He tweeted: “We hear you (and love you) from the Oval Office. MAKE AMERICA BIG AGAIN!
—Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 5, 2021
The protest took place ahead of a larger rally in the city scheduled for Wednesday, dubbed the “March for Trump / Save America” rally, to which Trump is scheduled to speak.
Many supporters came from other parts of the country to attend.
Congress is expected to vote on Wednesday to ratify Biden’s victory, although some Republicans plan to formally oppose it.
Their plan is expected to fail, with most lawmakers having to accept the results.
Trump’s own plans to overturn election results through court challenges have failed. He and Republican officials have not won any of the 42 lawsuits they have filed since election day.
Trump has since turned his attention to Wednesday, spending the past few weeks exciting his supporters by mistakenly claiming that the Jan.6 vote in Congress was a chance to overturn the election.
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