President Trump held a massive rally in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday. His crowd of supporters cheered him on as he sounded off on voter fraud and gave Vice President Mike Pence one last instruction to refuse to certify today's electoral college vote in Congress. If he doesn't, Trump said, he'll be very "disappointed" in him. The crowd roared. At one point, his supporters confronted Republican lawmakers outside their Senate offices on Capitol Hill, especially those who don't plan to object to today's final vote.
"You're supposed to represent our opinions," one woman told directly told Sen. Todd Young (R-IN). He pushed back.
Republican senators are being swarmed by Trump protesters on the Hill. Here’s an exasperated @SenToddYoung saying he won’t vote against certifying the election.
— Rebecca Tan (@rebtanhs) January 6, 2021
“I took oath under God... does that still matter in this country?” pic.twitter.com/9nQEbt9Okl
"My opinion doesn't matter," he said. "And you know what, when it comes to the law, our opinions don't matter. The law matters."
Then the senator began to raise his voice.
"I value your opinion...I actually share your concerns," he said. "I share your conviction that President Trump should remain president. I share that conviction!"
The Trump supporters surrounding him began to push back, at which Young shouted, “I took an oath under God. Under God! Do we still take that seriously in this country? Does that still matter in this country?”
Following the confrontation, Sen. Young released a statement explaining his decision to accept the electoral college certification.
My statement on today’s joint session of Congress to certify the results of the Electoral College. https://t.co/1D4Q7z6EVK pic.twitter.com/Ghqh08Teht
— Senator Todd Young (@SenToddYoung) January 6, 2021