Just a day after asset management executives and other corporate leaders signed a letter to Congress demanding that lawmakers certify the results of the 2020 presidential election, they watched in horror as pro-Trump extremists, some armed, staged a Capitol insurrection of the US on Wednesday in an unprecedented attack on US democracy.
Shocking footage of the attack was shown on television, showing protesters breaking windows and climbing to enter the Capitol building. Shots were fired on the Capitol grounds, with a woman allegedly shot in the chest. She died later, according to a Washington Post report. Several police officers were injured in the confusion, according to CNN reports.
Members of Congress should have spent the day certifying the results of the 2020 presidential election, which Democrat Joe Biden won. President Donald Trump had been making false claims for months that the presidential election results were fraudulent – with the U.S. Supreme Court twice refusing to hear lawsuits seeking to overturn the November 3 election. Vice President Mike Pence had previously said he would not block certification of Biden’s victory.
The normally pedestrian certification process already promised to be different this time, after a group of Republican lawmakers, including Senator Ted Cruz, said in a January 2 statement that they planned to reject electoral votes from certain states unless Congress created one. a commission to investigate unfounded allegations of electoral fraud.
But the day took an explosive turn shortly after 2 pm, when protesters stormed the Capitol building. Institutional investor journalists contacted industry leaders to get their reaction to the chaos on Wednesday. Here’s what they said.
“I condemn violence in our Capitol today in the strongest possible terms,” said BlackRock President and CEO Larry Fink in a statement to the Institutional investor. “This is an attack on our nation, our democracy and the will of the American people. The peaceful transfer of power is the basis of our democracy. We are who we are as a nation because of our democratic institutions and processes. “
David McCormick, CEO of Bridgewater Associates and former Under Secretary of the Treasury to President George W. Bush, said II: “I am watching the violence in the country’s capital with disgust and disgust. Today’s takeover of Capitol is seditious and an attack on our most expensive national principles. Since George Washington left in 1797, the peaceful transfer of power has been the hallmark of our republic and a symbol of our freedom under the law. Today’s events demonstrate how vulnerable this sacred tradition is. “
He continued: “Abraham Lincoln once remarked that if we commit to preserving the great American experiment, ‘all efforts and all unsuccessful attempts to subvert our national freedom will go”. We all have a responsibility to ensure that this is true. It is on all of our shoulders to forge a better nation, to respect and defend the law and to preserve and renew the bonds that hold us together. This duty, not only for our public servants, but for all Americans, is great today. “
Goldman Sachs President and CEO David Solomon took a similarly dark tone in his statement to II. “For years, our democracy has built a reservoir of goodwill around the world that brings important benefits to our citizens. We recently wasted that goodwill at an alarming rate and today’s attack on the US Capitol is causing even more damage, ”he said. “It is time for all Americans to come together and move forward with a peaceful transition of power. We must begin to reinvest in our democracy and rebuild the institutions that have made America an exceptional nation. “
George Walker, President and CEO of Neuberger Berman, said II: “I – like other CEOs – have been doing everything we can for months to ask for a smooth transition of power. Today’s events are heartbreaking, but unfortunately they are not surprising. “
PIMCO CEO Emmanuel Roman and group investment director Dan Ivascyn said in a statement to II, “We are concerned and saddened by the images of today’s events at the Capitol, which are an attack on our institutions and the values of democracy that guide us. However, we are also confident in the strength of these institutions and the goodwill of our elected leaders will ensure that the nation continues its legal transition to new leadership. ”
Said Jamie Dimon, president and CEO of JPMorgan Chase: “I strongly condemn violence in our country’s capital. We are not like that as a people or country. We are better than that. Our elected leaders have a responsibility to call for an end to violence, to accept the results and, as our democracy has done for hundreds of years, to support the peaceful transition of power. Now is the time to come together to strengthen our exceptional union. “
Citi CEO Michael Corbat said in a statement to II: “I am disgusted by the actions of those who invaded the United States Capitol in an effort to interrupt the certification of the Electoral College, a process required by our Constitution as part of our practice of peaceful transitions of power between presidents. As one of America’s oldest companies, we have seen our country go through other difficult events. Although these scenes are very difficult to watch, I have faith in our democratic process and I know that the important work of Congress will continue and that people will be held responsible for their actions. I pray that this situation can be resolved without further bloodshed. “
Carlyle Group CEO Kewsong Lee also condemned the attack. “I condemn the chaos and illegal behavior witnessed today in the capital of our country,” he said in a statement. “It is deeply disturbing after the bitter and contentious electoral process that has put tremendous pressure on all of us. Our country is better than that and deserves better than that. Today is designed to be about a constructive and peaceful presidential transition, and we must continue to repair the damage that has been done to our social fabric and democracy. In such a polarized and divisive world, we need to base ourselves on the basic premise that we have much more in common than not, and on the simple truth that we must respect each other, even if we do not share Views. “
Cliff Asness, co-founder and CIO of AQR Capital Management, was blunt when contacted by II: “The president inciting this is outrageous and the protesters must stop or be stopped.”
Muddy Waters Capital Management founder Carson Block – a more colorful yet less influential asset manager – offered the most unambiguous assessment of the day’s events.
“I’m not surprised to see that this is about violence,” he said II. “Obviously it has been very nurtured in recent days by the president, [National Security Adviser] Mike Flynn, and then [Trump lawyer Rudy] Guiliani calls for trial in combat at the DC rally. I am sure that this is far from the end of the type of violence and problems that we will see in this country if we cannot control this right-wing authoritarianism that is really taking off … These are just disgusting. —— people. “
—Michelle Celarier, Christine Idzelis, Kip McDaniel, Alicia McElhaney, Julie Segal and Amy Whyte contributed to this report.