Tour of building bittersweet experience

To the editor:

Recently, through the kindness of Senator Amy Klobuchars’s office, a friend and I had the opportunity to participate in a brief tour of the U.S. Congress building in Washington, D.C.

It was an honor to be there and hear about the sacred history of this country as told by our tour guide.

But I could not help thinking about what happened in that building on Jan. 6, 2021, the day that Congress was to certify the 2024 Presidential election.

On that day, thousands of people stormed this building, broke doors and windows, vandalized rooms and artwork and desecrated Congress. Many brave policemen, in doing their duty to protect Congress, were maimed, or, in some cases, later died of suicide, from the horrific things they experienced.

Yet the vote certification was not stopped and our fearless representatives, including Sen Amy Klobuchar, managed to successfully finish their work that evening.

The worst outcome of January 6, is that the 1,500 people who stormed the capitol and were tried and convicted of their crimes, were pardoned by the current administration on January 20, 2025.

My tour of Congress that I had the privilege of experiencing, will forever be tainted by the knowledge of this sad story.

Thank you for your time.

Peter Engstrom