House prosecutors revealed during the impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump that Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-California) was evacuated from the Capitol building during the Capitol insurrection. Capitol Police and the Speaker’s security detail believed if rioters found Pelosi, they would likely kill her.
“He told them to ‘fight like hell,’ and they brought us hell that day,” said Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Maryland), before showing previously unreleased footage and police radio recordings from January 6/s riots in the Capitol building. “The evidence will show you that ex-President Trump was no innocent bystander. The evidence will show that he clearly incited the January 6 insurrection. It will show that Donald Trump surrendered his role as commander-in-chief and became the inciter-in-chief of a dangerous insurrection.”
“We know from the rioters themselves that if they had found Speaker Pelosi, they would have killed her,” said Del. Stacey Plaskett (D-Virgin Islands), one of the impeachment managers.
Plaskett then showed that one of the rioters, who breached the House speaker’s office was armed with a stun gun. Rioters were shouting Pelosi’s name in the halls of the Capitol. Plaskett also introduced previously unseen footage of Pelosi staffers barricading themselves in a nearby conference room while rioters ransacked the House speaker’s office. Rioters later attempted to force open the door where staffers were sheltering in place.
