Skip to content
RollCall logo

Podcasts

The Transition: Doing your job under duress

Political Theater, Episode 176

Rep. Chris Stewart (right) and another man view rioters who broke into the Capitol on Wednesday, halting debate over the certification of Electoral College votes. Correction: A previous caption of this photo misidentified the man on the left.
Rep. Chris Stewart (right) and another man view rioters who broke into the Capitol on Wednesday, halting debate over the certification of Electoral College votes. Correction: A previous caption of this photo misidentified the man on the left. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)
By Jason Dick, Katherine Tully-McManus, Niels Lesniewski and Evan Campbell
Posted January 7, 2021 at 6:07pm

The shock of the violent overrunning of the U.S. Capitol this week featured a lot of people knuckling down, thinking on their feet and doing their jobs amid a dangerous and unpredictable situation.

In this special episode of the Political Theater podcast, Katherine Tully-McManus recalls the strange and stirring moments in the Capitol as she evacuated with senators, staffers and fellow journalists. Niels Lesniewski, meanwhile, details his thinking as he covered the implications of Congress having to possibly meet off-site and what may come next in the aftermath of President Donald Trump’s incitement of a mob.

Show Notes:

Recent Stories

Former White House aide Dan Koh, accompanied by his daughter, talks with Lily Holzman, right, and Dorothy Lubas during an Aug. 15 meet-and-greet hosted by the Peabody Democratic City Committee in Peabody, Mass., for candidates running for Massachusetts' 6th District. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)

A Massachusetts primary tests Democrats’ appetite to ‘change the culture’

A worker stocks Angus beef top sirloin filets in the meat section of a grocery store in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 25, 2025.

Trump creates beef with ranchers over new import plan

Construction continues on a new helipad on the South Lawn of the White House and the East Wing ballroom on August 20, 2026.

White House ballroom construction can proceed, SCOTUS says

A child is vaccinated during an immunization event at the L.A. Care and Blue Shield of California Promise Health Plan Community Resource Center in Los Angeles on Oct. 24, 2025.

HHS seeks input on kids vaccination changes called for by Trump

President Donald Trump looks on before signing a piece of stone at the construction site of a helipad on the South Lawn of the White House on Wednesday. (Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images)

Trump tries to shrug off opponents’ rush to define him as lame duck

California state Sen. Aisha Wahab speaks to reporters during her election night watch party in Hayward, Calif., on Tuesday. (Heather Diehl/Getty Images)

Progressive Aisha Wahab wins California special election for Swalwell’s seat