Here's what Latino-American lawmakers said after the Jan. 6 Capitol riots

January 6 marks one year since a group of demonstrators illegally entered the U.S. Capitol Building on the day a joint session of Congress was set to formally certify Joe Biden as president of the United States.

The riot ultimately left four protesters dead and hundreds of civilians and police officers injured.

The breach lasted several hours, but its impact is still being felt around the country, especially in Washington, where political battles stemming from the riot have deepened the already-stark partisan divisions on Capitol Hill.

Over the past year, 725 people have been arrested from nearly all 50 states and Washington, D.C.

On the anniversary of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, ADN America revisits what prominent Latino lawmakers — both Democrat and Republican — said immediately after the Capitol breach occurred.

Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL):

“We must protect and revere law our enforcement officers who put their lives on the line each day for our safety. While peaceful protests are an integral part of our democracy, lawlessness and violence are NOT acceptable. The Capitol building is the center and sacred symbol of democracy. Today’s violent actions undermine the principles and values that our nation was founded on. Individuals who broke into the US Capitol or assaulted our law enforcement should face the full consequences of the law.”

Read more here.

Sen. Cortez Masto (D-NV):

“Many believe that for America to succeed, our politics must find common ground. And that has never been clearer than today, when armed rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol, emboldened by President Trump’s false and inflammatory rhetoric about the 2020 elections

 “I believe that we in this Chamber have a special duty as leaders to work together to lower the temperature of our politics. And I hope that my colleagues who have questioned the legitimacy of this election in Arizona — and all of these other states — now see the dire and dangerous consequences of sowing doubt and uncertainty.”

Read more here. 

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX):

"Well yesterday's event was tragic. We saw a terrorist attack on the United States Capitol, it was despicable, it was an assault. And every one of those violent criminals who attacked the Capitol, they should be fully prosecuted. And they should spend a long, long time in jail. It was really a sad day for the country to see violence overwhelming the grounds of the Capitol building."

Read more here.

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL):

“My entire life, I have lived with and next to people who came to America because their country was chaotic, their country was unsafe. What I saw today — what we have seen — looks more like those countries than the extraordinary nation that I am privileged to call home. And I think about the mockery that it makes of our country…

“I think politics has made us crazy! Everybody in this country has lost their minds on politics. And we have forgotten that America is not a government. America is not a president. America is not a Congress”

Read more here.

Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ):

“Today, I shed a tear for our country, which for centuries has inspired the world through its commitment to democracy and the rule of law. From Moscow to Beijing and beyond, autocrats are likely smiling as they witness America in disarray, at war with itself, and no longer a credible messenger for the democratic values that have always defined our great Republic.

“How we arrived at this moment, with domestic terrorists storming Congress and desecrating the Capitol, should be no mystery.  This was not an act of patriotism, but an act of sedition.  For months, President Trump has fed Americans a steady diet of lies and disinformation in an effort to overthrow the November 2020 election and cling on to power.”

Read more here.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY):

“Many of us merely and narrowly escaped death. There were members of Capitol Police, who were quite heroic … there were also black and brown officers that were confronting white supremacists and putting themselves, not just to protect members, but they put themselves in harm's way …

“There were QAnon and white supremacist sympathizers and, frankly, white supremacist members of Congress in that extraction point who I know and who I have felt would disclose my location and would create opportunities to allow me to be hurt, kidnapped, et cetera.”

Read more here.

Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ):

“Today's events will go down as one of the darkest and most shameful days of our republic as domestic terrorists stormed the Capitol in an effort to threaten and intimidate lawmakers into overturning our free and fair elections. They interrupted just as Arizona's Democratic delegation began defending the integrity of Arizona's election and the will of the people to cast Arizona's Electoral College votes to Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.

“For years, President Trump has engaged in a relentless assault on our values, sought to divide us, and pitted communities against one another. He's denigrated our institutions, attacked our values, and winked and nodded to the ideas of dangerous militias and conspiracy theorists.”

Read more here.