White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany took the podium on Thursday to make a brief statement "on behalf of the entire White House," rather than "on behalf of the president" as usual.
In response to the mob of Trump supporters who broke into the Capitol building on Wednesday to block Congress from certifying the presidential election results, leaving four people dead, McEnany said the White House believes the "violence we saw yesterday at our nation's Capitol was appalling, reprehensible and antithetical to the American way."
"We condemn it — the president and this administration — in the strongest possible terms," she continued. She called for "those that broke the law" to be prosecuted. She did not mention that President Trump had encouraged supporters to march to the Capitol and "fight" the certification.
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.
McEnany then compared her condemnation of the Capitol rioters to her criticism of those who protested against racial injustice over the summer, noting that she supports only the right to "peaceably assemble" in both cases. "What we saw yesterday afternoon ... was not that," she said.
"Those who violently besieged our Capitol are the opposite of everything this administration stands for," she said, also insisting that White House staff is working "an orderly transition of power."
The statement was just under two minutes, did not mention Trump by name, and McEnany took no questions. Watch the full statement below. Summer Meza
-
China’s single mothers are teaming upUnder the Radar To cope with money pressures and work commitments, single mums are sharing homes, bills and childcare
-
Employees are branching out rather than moving up with career minimalismThe explainer From career ladder to lily pad
-
‘It is their greed and the pollution from their products that hurt consumers’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Femicide: Italy’s newest crimeThe Explainer Landmark law to criminalise murder of a woman as an ‘act of hatred’ or ‘subjugation’ but critics say Italy is still deeply patriarchal
-
Brazil’s Bolsonaro behind bars after appeals run outSpeed Read He will serve 27 years in prison
-
Americans traveling abroad face renewed criticism in the Trump eraThe Explainer Some of Trump’s behavior has Americans being questioned
-
UN Security Council backs Trump’s Gaza peace planSpeed Read The United Nations voted 13-0 to endorse President Donald Trump’s 20-point plan to withdraw Israeli troops from Gaza
-
Chile picks leftist, far-right candidates for runoff voteSpeed Read The presidential runoff election will be between Jeannette Jara, a progressive from President Gabriel Boric’s governing coalition, and far-right former congressman José Antonio Kast
-
Venezuela mobilizes as top US warship nearsSpeed Read The largest and most advanced US aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, has entered the Caribbean and put Venezuela on high alert
-
Nigeria confused by Trump invasion threatSpeed Read Trump has claimed the country is persecuting Christians
-
Gaza ceasefire teeters as Netanyahu orders strikesSpeed Read Israel accused Hamas of firing on Israeli troops
