‘There Will be a Next Time’: Hill Staffer Claims He Surveys Office for Items to Fight Off Future Rioters

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A senior congressional staffer said he finds himself routinely surveying his office for items he can use to defend himself with during the “next” Capitol riot.

Ahead of the one-year anniversary of the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol, which briefly prevented lawmakers from certifying the 2020 election results, Business Insider spoke to a number of staffers.

Some staffers recalled feeling vulnerable last year as the building was stormed by a crowd, following a rally held by former President Donald Trump.

One of them, who was not named, but reportedly works for a congressional Democrat, predicted there will be another riot. He told the outlet he will be ready to arm himself next time.

“It’s unfortunate that we now have to take our own personal security into account, and I definitely have plans on what I can use in the office to fight my way out the next time…and there will be a next time,” the man told the outlet on Thursday. “I will not let those bastards scare me away from doing my job.”

The staffer who spoke to Business Insider was not the only Capitol Hill staffer who predicted congressional aides will face a future wave of rioters.

Another unnamed staffer said, “The people who work here know that the next time shit goes down, it’s everyone for themselves.”

That person said that last year, staffers “were hung out to dry” during the riot.

One staffer who was named, Congressional Middle Eastern and North African Staff Association president Diala Qasem, said she now feels insecure while working.

“Any sense of security or safety that we had at our workplace vanished,” Qasem said. “One year later, many of us are still dealing with this pain.”

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