A West Virginia lawmaker who recorded, and then deleted, a video of himself storming the Capitol building with hundreds of rioters is facing mounting pressure to resign.
Nearly 32,000 people signed a Change.org petition demanding Republican Del. Derrick Evans step down.
“Remove him from his seat for leading and participating in terrorism and going against the constitution and rule of law,” the petition reads.
Evans live-streamed a video on his Facebook page Wednesday afternoon of himself outside the Capitol building as rioters who support President Donald Trump pushed against a police barricade.
“Bring the tear gas, we don’t care,” the lawmaker is heard yelling. “We’re taking this country back whether you like it or not. Today’s a test run. We’re taking this country back.”
At another point, he’s heard asking, “where’s the Proud Boys,” referring to the far-right, all-male, self-described group of “Western chauvinists.”
As rioters push past officers, Evans says that he didn’t touch anything and was just there to watch. Eventually, the group makes its way inside the Capitol. Evans tells people not to vandalize before yelling, “Patriots inside, baby.”
Evans has since deleted the video and defended his actions, saying in a Facebook statement that he attended the protest as “an independent member of the media to film history.”
“As many of you know, for the last few years, I have traveled across the country to film many different events,” he wrote. “Today, I had the opportunity to film another event in D.C. I want to assure you all that I did not have any negative interactions with law enforcement nor did I participate in any destruction that may have occurred.”
A spokesperson for the West Virginia House of Delegates told The Associated Press that House Speaker Roger Hanshaw, a Republican, “will evaluate all the potential consequences once the totality of the situation is understood.”
“While free speech and peaceful protests are a core value of American society, storming government buildings and participating in a violent intentional disruption of one of our nation’s most fundamental political institutions is a crime that should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” Hanshaw said in a statement.
House Minority Leader Doug Skaff Jr., a Democrat, said Evans’ behavior was unacceptable and called on Hanshaw to suspend Evans’ access to the Statehouse and launch an investigation.
A ceremonial event was being held at the Capitol to affirm President-elect Joe Biden’s win when the pro-Trump mob stormed the building. It was abruptly paused and members of Congress and Vice President Mike Pence had to seek shelter.
Four people died during the chaos, including a woman who was fatally shot by police.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
