Capitol rioters shouting 'hang Mike Pence' were just seconds away when VP and his family were evacuated
On January 6, 2021, the US Capitol was breached by pro-Trump supporters and ended with many arrests, a few fatalities, and damage to government properties among other things. According to a report by The Washington Post, while Vice President Mike Pence was eventually evacuated from the premises, law enforcement officials and video footage reveal that the rioters were very close to reaching him. The soon-to-be-former vice president was taken to a room "off the Senate floor" along with his wife Karen Pence and daughter Charlotte Pence Bond as the rioters slammed Pence as a traitor and called for his hanging. About 60 seconds after the vice president was taken away, a group of rioters is seen chasing police officer Eugene Goodman away from the Senate to a landing. Pence and his family, the report claim, had "ducked into a hideaway less than 100 feet from that landing", according to people in the know of the VP's movement during the siege.
It was a matter of seconds, and had the mob come up to that landing a little earlier, they would have seen Pence.
What happened on January 6, 2021?
Questions have been raised as to why the vice president was not evacuated from the area earlier by the Secret Service. Pence was there to preside over the Congress session that would certify Joe Biden's winin the 2020 election. Pence, according to the publication, remained in his office for "more than an hour after the Capitol Police chief said he alerted his superiors that his force was being overrun and needed emergency reinforcements."
The only information that has been given by the Secret Service is from spokeswoman Catherine Milhoan who said, "While the Secret Service does not speak specifically about the means and methods of our protective operations, Vice President Pence was secure at all times on January 6." After the vice president was removed from his office, he was kept at an unnamed secure location, there is no news of how much time that took. It would make sense to keep the vice president secure considering the riots and the crowd got more dangerous as time passed by - from weapons such as pipes and the breaking of windows to the injuries and deaths that took place.
To make matters worse, parts of the mob weren't fans of the vice president because he was there to formalize Biden's win - some even screamed "Hang Mike Pence!" Images of Arizona resident Jacob A. Chansley aka QAnon Shaman sitting on the vice president's chair went viral. He apparently left a note reading “It’s only a matter of time, justice is coming” on his desk, according to court filings.
The building was later secured with the help of DC police officers, FBI SWAT team members, Secret Service officers, and National Guard soldiers. Speaking of the riots, Pence had said, "Today was a dark day in the history of the United States Capitol. We will always be grateful to the men and women who stayed at their posts to defend this historic place. To those who wreaked havoc in our Capitol today, you did not win. Violence never wins. Freedom wins. And this is still the People’s House."