Chuck Schumer: “Thank you to my friend Senator Kaine of Virginia for his good words, and I thank Senator Padilla for organizing this…”

“Thank you to my friend Senator Kaine of Virginia for his good words, and I thank Senator Padilla for organizing this floor block, and all of my colleagues who have come to the floor today. I see Senator Peters is waiting. Why are we here to speak on this difficult and somber day? Because 5 years ago today, down to this very hour, the temple of democracy was turned into a snake pit of mob violence. Its windows were smashed. Its offices vandalized. Lawmakers and our staffs--everyday citizens who love their country and work here every day--hid beneath desks and feared for their lives. Nearly 140 police officers were injured as 5 people lost their lives. It is like yesterday to me. I was sitting right at this desk. I had just known on January 5, the day before, that I was becoming majority leader because we had won the seats in Georgia. And I am sitting there and looking at something, and all of a sudden, I feel a hand on my collar. It was Michael Lanczycki, the head of my security team. He said: You are in danger. We have got to get out of here. I looked up at my desk, and I saw Pence being rushed off the platform. We went out the door. We made a right turn. We opened another door, and we were within 20 feet of these hooligans, one of whom recognized me and said: Let's get him. Because of the bravery of the Capitol Police officers, nothing bad happened to us, but it was a horrible day.”