Gov. Jay Inslee addressed the state today following a day of unrest and violence in both the state of Washington and Washington, D.C.
Rioters broke in to the U.S. Capitol and breached the gates of the governor's Executive Residence in Olympia in protest of the Electoral College certification of the 2020 election.
The statement reads, in part:
“Good evening.
“First, I just want to say that Trudi and I are at the residence tonight and we’re doing just fine. Thank you to all those who expressed concern, but we are doing quite well. Thank you.
“Today has been a very tumultuous day for Americans and Washingtonians, for obvious reasons.
“On a day in our nation’s capital, where we were to effectuate the most important act of our democracy — the peaceful transfer of power — was forcefully interrupted by those who refuse to accept verdicts of the people, the courts, and the truth itself.
“Here in our capital on a day that was to be dedicated to preparing for the opening day of our legislative session, so that we could address our challenges, including the pandemic, that work was forcefully interrupted by similar acts of attempted intimidation.
“But I have good news to share with my fellow Washingtonians.
“Those acts of intimidation will not succeed in any way shape or form. We will continue the work we are doing to protect the health of Washingtonians. In D.C., Congress will follow the will of the American people and take yet another step on the long march to protecting people’s right to self-government that has so far succeeded through centuries of frequent tension in our politics."
Watch the speech and read the full transcript on the governor's Medium page.