Rep. Ayanna Pressley's chief of staff, Sarah Gloh, has revealed that damage had been done to the congresswoman's office before the riots began last Wednesday. During a recent interview, Gloh said that her office's "panic button" has been ripped out before the riots began on Wednesday.
The congresswoman's day began early as she arrived to work with her husband, Conan Harris, hours before Congress was set to discuss the results of the electoral college. En route to work, Pressley was well aware of the crowds that formed to dispute the results of the election.
“I was deeply concerned. It felt like the heat was being turned up in terms of the rhetoric and Trump’s aims to incite violence,” Pressley.
Not long after Pressley arrived after work, Donald Trump's "Save America" rally ended and rioters traveled to the Capitol. As rioters worked to break-in into the building, Gloh and other staffers gathered chairs, water jugs and other items to help barricade the building. With the mob growing, Gloh noticed that the "panic button" had been removed from the office.
“Every panic button in my office had been torn out — the whole unit,” Gloh said.
As threats against Congress continue to form, Pressley and her staff have raised this issue with security. Shortly after raising this issue with security, a spokesperson for Pressley released a statement regarding the matter.
“The matter has been raised with the relevant agencies and is currently under investigation," the spokesperson said.
One week away from the Inauguration, it appears that a "duress button" has been reinstalled in the congresswoman's office.
“The safety of the Congresswoman, her family and our staff remains our top priority and at the direction of the Congresswoman, the Sergeant at Arms oversaw the installation of new duress buttons throughout the office following the attack,” a spokesperson for Rep. Pressley added.
In the coming weeks, the Department of Justice is expected to release a report regarding the riots and how they came to be.
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