US Capitol Crisis 'Creation Of An Entirely Distorted Reality' Instigated By President Trump, Rutgers University Associate Professor Says
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Political experts are warning about the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and what it means for the future of the democracy in the United States. Eyewitness News spoke with an associate Rutgers University political science professor who believes President Donald Trump is culpable in the breach of the Capitol building because he has been dividing the nation for years.
Kelly Dittmar, an associate professor of political science at Rutgers University-Camden, said she's not surprised by the violence in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday.
"We've seen this creation of an entirely distorted reality that has been believed by Trump supporters," Kelly Dittmar said. "They have their own media sources, their own news sources. When you call legitimate news 'fake news,' that means you're getting your information from somewhere else. And what we know, from all of the research is, that it's also incorrect and it's fueling these conspiracy theories, that inevitably is going to lead to something serious like this. Obviously, you hope it doesn't get to this point, but I don't think it's surprising. What is somewhat surprising to many of us today is that security wasn't prepared for this."
Dittmar expects more information about the failure of security in the coming days.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy tweeted Wednesday afternoon he's deployed the state police to D.C.
"At the request of DC officials, I am deploying the New Jersey State Police to the District of Columbia to facilitate the peaceful transition of power & protect our democracy. We are prepared to deploy the New Jersey National Guard upon request. May God Bless America and our brave men and women in uniform," Murphy wrote in a tweet.
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