Capitol Security Footage/Getty Officer Eugene Goodman directs Mitt Romney to turn around during a siege on the U.S. Capitol./Officer Eugene Goodman at a rehearsal for the inauguration.
Capitol Police Officer Eugene Goodman is earning more praise after another video surfaced showing his actions during the storm of the U.S. Capitol building. Goodman was hailed as a hero for luring rioters away from the Senate floor, and now he is credited with saving U.S. Senator Mitt Romney’s life.
Goodman is a U.S. Army veteran who has worked as a U.S. Capitol Police officer for more than a decade. He also escorted Vice President Kamala Harris at the inauguration. Read more about him here.
Here’s what you need to know:
Video Shows Goodman Encounter Romney in the Hallway as the Senator Headed Toward Capitol Rioters
Whoa: Eugene Goodman ran into Mitt Romney in the hallway and told him to turn around and get to safety, as the mob entered the building, in new footage.
Romney was going to run DIRECTLY into the rioters
A new video released of Goodman shows him encountering Romney in a hallway at the U.S. Capitol as rioters stormed the building January 6, 2021. It was presented Wednesday, February 10, 2021 by House impeachment managers during opening arguments as a part of former President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial. Trump was impeached by the House on a charge of incitement of insurrection. The video was also shared on Twitter by Philip Lewis of HuffPost.
“Whoa: Eugene Goodman ran into Mitt Romney in the hallway and told him to turn around and get to safety, as the mob entered the building, in new footage,” Lewis wrote. “Romney was going to run DIRECTLY into the rioters.”
The 12-second video shows Goodman running down the hallway, with Romney and another man headed in the opposite direction. Goodman touches Romney’s shoulder and advises him to go the other way. The video was from Capitol Security Footage. It had more than 363,000 views in less than two hours.
“Officer Goodman passes Senator Mitt Romney and directs him to turn around in order to get to safety,” House impeachment manager Stacey Plaskett said as the silent video played at the trial.
Romney Said He Did Not Know How Close He Was to the Mob & Looks Forward to Thanking Goodman
Security footage played at President Trump’s impeachment trial shows U.S. Capitol Police officer Eugene Goodman warning Sen. Mitt Romney that rioters were headed his way shortly after the building was breached on Jan. 6.
Romney did not know how close he was to rioters who breached the Capitol when he was directed to turn the opposite way, and did not realize it was Goodman telling him to turn around during the brief encounter, according to CBS News. He watched the footage for the first time as it was being presented during the impeachment trial.
Romney “was watching the footage carefully as it showed Goodman potentially saving his life. Most of the senators were also glued to the footage,” CBS News reported.
Romney told reporters watching the footage was “troubling.”
“I look forward to thanking him when I next see him,” CBS quoted Romney as saying. “That I was very fortunate indeed that Officer Goodman was there to get me in the right direction.”
In previous interviews, Capitol Police officers told The Associated Press they received no warnings of potential violence on January 6, and that they were not trained or equipped to stop the mob who stormed the building in an attempt to disrupt the certification of electoral votes for President Joe Biden.
Goodman Was Recognized By Congress for Luring Rioters Away From the Senate Floor During the Storm of the Capitol
Here’s the scary moment when protesters initially got into the building from the first floor and made their way outside Senate chamber.
Footage released in the days after the storm of the Capitol showed Goodman lure rioters away from the Senate floor, where Congress was meeting to certify electoral votes for Biden. The Associated Press reported some rioters grabbed fire extinguishers from the walls as they breached the building.
“Where are they counting the votes?” someone shouted as they stormed the building.
“Don’t do it,” Goodman responds. “Don’t do it.”
He confronted the mob, raising his hand and directing them to stop. He then led them toward a staircase as they followed up the stairs and away from the Senate door and chamber. Vice President Mike Pence and his family were only about 100 feet away, The Associated Press reported.
Some rioters chanted “Hang Mike Pence!” and “Bring out Pence!” as they roamed the building, other videos showed.
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