Photo shows GOP congressman barricading door to protect himself from the violent insurrectionists he likened to 'normal tourists'

Far-right Rep. Andrew Clyde of Georgia has been drawing a great deal of scathing criticism for his recent comments comparing the January 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol Building to a "normal tourist visit." But a photo taken during the invasion of the Capitol, Thomas Colson reports in Business Insider, shows Clyde and security helping to barricade a door inside the Capitol in order to protect himself from those "tourists."

During a House Oversight Committee hearing on May 12, Clyde seriously downplayed the horrors of January 6, when a mob of far-right extremists stormed the Capitol in the hope of preventing Congress from certifying now-President Joe Biden's Electoral College victory over then-President Donald Trump in 2020. The extremists included members of the Proud Boys, the Oath Keepers and QAnon, among others, and some of the Capitol rioters were calling for then-President Mike Pence to be lynched — as they believed he had betrayed Trump by not stopping Biden's Electoral College certification. A hangman's noose meant for Pence was set up outside the Capitol, and one of the rioters was carrying zip-tie plastic handcuffs.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York City has stressed that she feared for her life on January 6. But when Clyde addressed the House Oversight Committee, he said it was a "bald-faced lie" to describe the invasion of the Capitol as an insurrection.

Clyde said, "You know, if you didn't know the TV footage was a video from January the 6th, you would actually think it was a normal tourist visit." But in the January 6 photo that Business Insider has published, it's obvious that Clyde is taking the Capitol invasion quite seriously as he helps security barricade the door.

Colson explains, "After Clyde's comments, a photographer shared a photo he had taken of Clyde using furniture to barricade the House against rioters trying to force their way in to disrupt the certification of President Joe Biden's election victory. Several people died in the riot."

The photographer, Tom Williams, has posted the photo on Twitter:

Clyde, Colson notes, "also falsely claimed that police officers had not confiscated any firearms from people who breached the Capitol."

Clyde was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2020. Following the election, he promoted Trump's false claims of widespread voter fraud. And was sworn into the House on January 3, taking over the seat that had been held by former Rep. Doug Collins.