NC Sen. Burr: ‘the President bears responsibility’ for riots at U.S. Capitol

WASHINGTON (WNCN) — North Carolina Senator Richard Burr is speaking out against the events that unfolded Wednesday at the U.S. Capitol, saying that President Trump “bears responsibility for today’s events”.

Burr went on to say that Trump has fueled events as such by promoting “unfounded conspiracy theories.”

“It is past time to accept the will of the American voters and to allow our nation to move forward.

President Trump continued his attack on the 2020 U.S. election results, even as rioters took to the Capitol amid the Electoral Vote certification.

In a tweet as Washington D.C. went under a curfew after supporters of the president barged into the Capitol and attacked police, Trump suggested that such events are a consequence of what he says happens when a “landslide election victory is so unceremoniously & viciously stripped away”.

“These are the things and events that happen when a sacred landslide election victory is so unceremoniously & viciously stripped away from great patriots who have been badly & unfairly treated for so long. Go home with love & in peace. Remember this day forever!,” Trump’s tweet read.

In an earlier video statement, the president continued to say the election was stolen from him but he called for peace. The video has since been removed from Facebook.

Twitter has since flagged and removed the president’s aforementioned tweet as a claim of election fraud and locked him out of his account for 12 hours.

“Let me be clear: these actions are not a defense of this country, but an attack on it,” Burr wrote in his statement.

Burr, who currently serves as one of North Carolina’s Republican Senators will not seek re-election in 2022.

“For nearly 250 years, our nation’s commitment to the peaceful transition of power has been the shining hallmark of our democracy. Today, America’s core principles were threatened by those seeking to forcibly stop our electoral process and overturn the results of a presidential election with which they disagreed. 

“Let me be clear: these actions are not a defense of this country, but an attack on it.

“I supported President Trump’s legal right to contest the election results through the courts, but the courts have now unanimously and overwhelmingly rejected these suits. No evidence of voter fraud has emerged that would warrant overturning the 2020 election. The President bears responsibility for today’s events by promoting the unfounded conspiracy theories that have led to this point. It is past time to accept the will of American voters and to allow our nation to move forward. 

“Congress will uphold its constitutional duty and certify the results of the election.”

Statement from Sen. Burr’s office