Meng recalls being ‘afraid’ while barricaded
as pro-Trump rioters invaded Capitol building
Photo courtesy of Meng’s Offi ce
TIMESLEDGER | Q 10 NS.COM | JAN. 15-JAN. 21, 2021
as Capitol police with, help from the
National Guard and FBI, eventually
secured the building.
She was relieved, as she didn’t
know “how successful” her barricade
would have been.
When asked whether she would
have expected anything like what
occurred on Wednesday to take
place in what many people consider
the safest place in the country, she
said “not at all.”
“I had no training at all,” Meng
said, laughing nervously.
But after hours of rioting delayed
the certification of votes — a routine
and ceremonial function after the
Electoral College officially elected
Biden — both the House and Senate
returned to officially begin the transition
of power.
Meng said she doesn’t believe
Congress’ role is to overturn votes
made by Americans.
“It’s important that we let Americans
voice their decisions at the ballot
box,” she said. “Last time Hilary
Clinton lost, she was my candidate,
and I didn’t like that she lost, but I
accepted it. I represent Democrats,
Republicans and everyone in between.
But at the end of the day, I
don’t believe Congress has the right
to overturn elections.”
However, one troubling aspect of
the chaos that ensued on Wednesday
was the response from Capitol
police. On Twitter, Meng said she’d
seen a much bigger police presence
months prior during Black Lives
Matter protests.
Meng arrived at the Capitol early
in the morning in order to beat
crowds and traffic, and was momentarily
worried about the unusual police
presence.
“But I left it up to maybe me being
there so early in the morning,
since no one was supposed to protest
till later in the day,” she said. “From
what I’ve seen on socials and TV, officers
seemed to get overwhelmed
and rioters were able to infiltrate.”
Meng, a member of the House
Appropriations Committee, which
funds the Capitol Police, said they’re
launching an investigation into the
security breach as some of her fellow
Congress members have asked
for a full and transparent review of
proceedings.
“I’ve been in Congress for a few
years now. I’ve seen so many protests
and large gatherings all the
time, the most recent being the BLM
protests,” she said. “It seems that every
other large gathering have had
a strong showing of police officers
with barricades up far away from
the Capitol building’s entrance.
They didn’t seem to have a strong
presence yesterday.”
Meng joined several Queens lawmakers
in calling for the immediate
removal of Trump from office, stating
he “incited yesterday’s chaos,
violence, and destruction at the U.S.
Capitol.”
BY ANGÉLICA ACEVEDO
One day after supporters of President
Donald Trump rioted and invaded
the Capitol building in Washington,
D.C., as members of the House
and Senate were in the process of
counting the electoral votes that
certified President-elect Joe Biden’s
win, Queens Congresswoman Grace
Meng recalled the day’s events during
a conversation with QNS.
Speaking from her apartment in
D.C. after leaving the Capitol around
3:30 a.m. on Thursday, Jan. 7, Meng
said she feels “fine” now, but said
she was “very nervous when everything
was happening.”
“After the Capitol police rescued
us, I felt much better,” Meng told
QNS.
Meng, who represent Queens’
Sixth Congressional District, had to
barricade herself in a side office of
the Capitol building when hundreds
of pro-Trump rioters began to
approach the entrance.
At around 1:30 p.m., she said
she received alerts about one of the
Capitol’s three buildings being
evacuated.
Meng said she was worried, as she
knew “the public wasn’t supposed to
be in the buildings.” She then got
another warning to stay away from
windows and doors, and to shelter
in place.
Within minutes, she began to feel
afraid.
“I heard a lot of thumping coming
from outside … then I saw on
TV that they were starting to march
right outside our door,” said Meng,
who added she could growing hear
chants coming from outside the
building. “I didn’t know if they had
weapons or if they were peaceful.”
Meng immediately turned off the
lights, turned the TV on mute and
put her phone on silent.
“I was still afraid they’d find me
or come in,” she said, so she decided
to push chairs in front of the door,
with a gas mask on her side.
Meng said she was just 20 feet
from where a woman who was with
the pro-Trump rioters breached the
building was shot. It was later confirmed
the woman died.
Throughout the ordeal, Meng
said she was in contact with her
family and friends via text messages
as they saw the chaos unfold on
the news, but she wasn’t comfortable
speaking on the phone because she
didn’t want the rioters to hear her.
Meng said that after an hour and
a half, none of the rioters broke into
the office where she was sheltered,
/NS.COM
