UPDATED 1/6, 10:40 p.m.: CNN's Kaitlan Collins reports that White House officials were disturbed by Trump's reaction to the storming of the Capitol by his supporters, which were described as being "borderline enthusiastic because it meant the certification was being derailed."
Collins added that it "genuinely freaked people out."
See original story below.
Crowds of Donald Trump supporters in Washington D.C, for the "Stop The Steal" rally being held on the National Mall stormed the Capitol building while Congress deliberated certifying the election results inside.
Photos and videos from people on the ground showed MAGA loyalists charging the steps and clashing with police while attempting to climb barricades around the building which houses both congressional chambers.
Police ordered the evacuation of the House Cannon Office Building, part of the Capitol complex.
Several police officers were injured by the rampaging Trump supporters and had to be evacuated from the scene.
As protests raged outside, warnings played inside the Capitol advised staff to stay away from windows. In spite of what was going on around the building, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell left no doubt where he stood on Trump's claims of a rigged election.
"Nothing before us proves illegality anywhere near the massive scale, the massive scale that would have tipped the entire election, " McConnell said. "Nor can public doubt alone justify a radical break when the doubt itself was incited without any evidence."
Shortly after McConnell spoke those words, protestors breached the Capitol's security. Photos from inside the building showed Trump supporters in the rotunda, discharging fire extinguishers and demanding to see senators.
Live feeds captured the moment that senators were told about the break-in.
Tear gas was deployed within the Capitol building and the city of DC declared a 6 p.m. curfew.
Protestors have reportedly fired into congressional chambers after breaching the U.S. Capitol building. Capitol police are said to be waiting with guns drawn as a crowd attempts to enter from outside.
President Trump urged his supporters to listen to the orders of Capitol Police, well after the situation got out of hand.
Meanwhile, a request by DC officials for the Defense Department to deploy the National Guard was reportedly denied.
Local reporter Lindsay Watts reported that a person inside the Capitol has been shot.
Bloomberg reporter Jennifer Jacobs cites sources inside the White House who claimed Trump was watching the riots on television in the Oval Office dining room.
Photos taken inside the Capitol showed protestors inside representatives' offices.
Trump asked his supporters, who had broken barricades, entered the Capitol and reportedly fired into the House chamber, to remain calm and non-violent.
Pro-Trump Republican representative Mike Gallagher called on the president to immediately support the results of the election. In an interview with CNN's Jake Tapper, he asked Trump to exert control over his supporters.
“The President needs to call it off … Call it off. It’s over. The election’s over. And the objectors need to stop meddling with the primal forces of our democracy here,” he said.
Though the Department of Defense reportedly declined a request to send in the National Guard, Virginia Governor Ralph Northam deployed his own state's Guardsmen to D.C. in response to requests from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser.
Sources inside the White House said that they were trying to push Trump to denounce the riots to no avail.
That was a far cry from Pence's response. The Vice President called on rioters to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
Additionally, Democratic leadership pushed Trump to publicly denounce the riots and demand his supporters leave Capitol Hill.
Back inside the Capitol, video emerged of police taking selfies with the protestors who had broken in. CNN reported that several officers had been injured in the riot.
At least one explosive device was found by law enforcement inside the Capitol, according to reports from NBC.
CNN shared that the DC National Guard has been activated in an attempt to quell the unrest.
"The D.C. Guard has been mobilized to provide support to federal law enforcement in the District. Acting Secretary Miller has been in contact with Congressional leadership, and Secretary McCarthy has been working with the D.C. government. The law enforcement response will be led by the Department of Justice," Pentagon Spokesman Johnathan Hoffman shared.
Joe Biden called on Trump to address the nation on national television in an effort to stop the violence.
After Biden's speech, Trump addressed the nation via a video posted to his Twitter, where he repeated false claims that the election was over and asked the rioters to go home.
Representative Ilhan Omar did not think Trump went far enough. His stirring the pot led directly to the riot. As such, Omar said she was drafting up articles of impeachment to have Trump removed from office by force for his role in the rioting.
Though early videos of the Capitol Hill breach showed rioters climbing fences and squaring off with police, video from other areas showed police letting rioters through the barricades.
CNN's Jim Acosta reported that the rioters intended to occupy the Capitol building through the night. Photos of protestors carrying zip ties showed that some were prepared to take hostages.
Reporter Matt Fuller, who is sheltered at an undisclosed location along with representatives, said that police have begun attempting to fully clear the Capitol of rioters. Video showed SWAT teams entering the Capitol building.
Senator Josh Hawley, one of the most vocal doubters of the election results in either chamber of Congress, has asked that the rioters disperse.
As for Congress' work in regards to the election, the body was nowhere near done certifying the results. At the outset of the riots, only 12 of the 538 electoral votes had been certified. Senator Jeff Merkey shared that the ballot boxes had been removed before rioters could reach them.
Trump's most-visible children all worked to distance themselves from the mob on Capitol Hill. Ivanka Trump, Eric Trump and Donald Trump, Jr. all called for the riots to end on Twitter.
Around 4:30 p.m. ET, large numbers FBI and DHS officers appeared around the capital complex in an attempt to aid the Capitol Police in removing rioters. DC Police reporter just 13 arrests so far.
According to rioters who spoke with journalists, some of the people inside the Capitol plan to get violent heading into the evening.
A woman who was shot during the storming of the Capitol passed away from her injuries, according to multiple reports.
Congress' top law enforcement officer, the Sargeant-at-Arms, reported that the Capitol building had been taken back from rioters and secured. The report came just before the citywide curfew went into effect.
Former president George W. Bush issues a statement denouncing the attack on the capitol, calling it a "sickening and heartbreaking sight."
Former president Barack Obama also released a statement on the incident, writing, "History will rightly remember today's violence at the Capitol, incident by a sitting president who has continued to baselessly lie about the outcome of a lawful election, as a moment of great dishonor and shame for our nation."
