Pelosi's office damaged during riot
The office of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) was vandalized on Wednesday when supporters of President Trump stormed the Capitol.
The nameplate above her office was stolen, and aides told CNN a large mirror was shattered. There were also messages left behind, including "we will not back down" scribbled on a folder. The Senate parliamentarian's office was ransacked as well, with CNN's Ali Zaslav tweeting a video showing furniture in disarray and paperwork strewn across the floor.
Richard "Bigo" Barnett of Gravette, Arkansas, bragged to New York Times reporter Matthew Rosenberg that he entered Pelosi's office and "wrote her a nasty note, put my feet up on her desk." He showed the Times an envelope with Pelosi's letterhead, and said he didn't steal it because "I put a quarter on her desk."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Barnett, who did not have on a mask, said when police entered Pelosi's office, armed with pepper spray, he told officers, "'I paid for this, it's mine,' and I left." Barnett claimed he was knocking on the office door when suddenly the crowd pushed him forward, and he found himself inside the room. "I'll probably be telling them this is what happened all the way to the D.C. jail," he said.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Political cartoons for December 20Cartoons Saturday’s political cartoons include drowning rats, the ACA, and more
-
5 fairly vain cartoons about Vanity Fair’s interviews with Susie WilesCartoon Artists take on demolition derby, alcoholic personality, and more
-
Joanna Trollope: novelist who had a No. 1 bestseller with The Rector’s WifeIn the Spotlight Trollope found fame with intelligent novels about the dramas and dilemmas of modern women
-
Trump HHS moves to end care for trans youthSpeed Read The administration is making sweeping proposals that would eliminate gender-affirming care for Americans under age 18
-
Jack Smith tells House of ‘proof’ of Trump’s crimesSpeed Read President Donald Trump ‘engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election,’ hoarded classified documents and ‘repeatedly tried to obstruct justice’
-
House GOP revolt forces vote on ACA subsidiesSpeed Read The new health care bill would lower some costs but not extend expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies
-
Hegseth rejects release of full boat strike footageSpeed Read There are calls to release video of the military killing two survivors of a Sept. 2 missile strike on an alleged drug trafficking boat
-
Trump vows naval blockade of most Venezuelan oilSpeed Read The announcement further escalates pressure on President Nicolás Maduro
-
Kushner drops Trump hotel project in SerbiaSpeed Read Affinity Partners pulled out of a deal to finance a Trump-branded development in Belgrade
-
Senate votes down ACA subsidies, GOP alternativeSpeed Read The Senate rejected the extension of Affordable Care Act tax credits, guaranteeing a steep rise in health care costs for millions of Americans
-
Abrego García freed from jail on judge’s orderSpeed Read The wrongfully deported man has been released from an ICE detention center
