Capitol assault a more sinister attack than first appeared

WASHINGTON — The full extent of the assault on the U.S. Capitol is coming into sharper focus, with scenes of violence so vast they are difficult to grasp.

Countless smartphone videos have been emerging from the scene, and more lawmakers are recounting the chaos that was around them.

Altogether they reveal the sinister nature of the assault. And they point to the crowd as a force determined to occupy the inner sanctums of Congress and hunt down leaders — Vice President Mike Pence and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi among them.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Columbia, at least one of those arrested for his participation in the siege on Wednesday had nearly a dozen explosive devices in a vehicle near the Capitol.

Some were photographed holding plastic cuffs while inside the Capitol Building, according to prosecutors, giving the impression they anticipated the need to tie-up someone once inside.

Democratic Rep. Jim McGovern of Massachusetts says what he witnessed was a display of “home-grown fascism that was out of control.”