Prince Albert says that President Donald Trump “has to be held accountable” for his role in the riots at the Capitol in Washington that left five dead, including a police officer who succumbed to injuries on Friday morning.
Not only is Prince Albert the reigning Sovereign of Monaco, he is also half American, so it is no surprise that he has an opinion on what happened at the Capitol building on Wednesday.
“This is not the America I know — the one I partially grew up in, went to school in,” Prince Albert told People on Thursday. “President Trump has to be held accountable.”
The Prince said he watched on “in shock” as pro-Trump rioters breached security while the United States Congress was voting to certify the Electoral College votes that secured the White House for President-elect Joe Biden.
It took several hours for authorities to regain control of the building, but not before four people were killed and many others were injured. A fifth victim, a police officer, died of his injuries in the early morning hours of 8^th January.
“I was up at our country house, Roc Agel, so as soon as I put on the news before going to bed, there it was, live from the streets of Washington,” he said. “It’s just unbelievable. I’m still in shock, but at the same time, I’m not totally surprised because, unfortunately, this is where we were heading.”
The Prince’s American roots are well-known. His mother was American actress Grace Kelly turned princess, and he spent significant time in the country of his mother’s birth, even going to university there.
“My wife had already retired, and I told her afterward. It was shock and disbelief and then it kind of quickly turned into disgust, really,” said Prince Albert. “But also anger about how this could have happened and how this was fuelled by President Trump.”
Prince Albert is a long-time detractor of the American President and was one of the few who publicly spoke out against him before and after his election.
“I felt months ago that there would be big problems whichever way the election went. It is a very sombre moment, not only in the U.S. but in contemporary world history: a president still in office who has, directly and indirectly, spurred a revolt like this. I agree with those who have said that President Trump has to be held accountable for this.”
Many Americans agree and the fallout is likely to be far-reaching, even after Trump has left office. There is talk of removing the sitting president from office before the 20^th January handover, either by impeachment or by invoking the 25^th Amendment which strips him of power.
The number of those in Trump’s own Republican party who are publicly turning against him is growing, and staffers are jumping ship in disgust or in a last-ditch effort to distance themselves from their political leader.
The president was also temporarily locked-out of his favourite forum Twitter, and has had his Facebook and Instagram pages blocked. When Trump was allowed Twitter privileges again on Thursday, he posted a video in which he finally acknowledged that his reign would come to an end on 20^th January – two months after the election was decided.