> Joe Biden says the events of January 6, 2021 were the greatest threat to American democracy since the Civil War. That invites a look at what happened at the Capitol on March 1, 1954, when Joe Biden was 11 years old. > Lolita Lebron, Rafael Cancel Miranda, Andres Figueroa Cordero, and Irvin Flores Rodrigues, were members of the Nationalist Party of Puerto Rico (PNPR), which had attempted to assassinate President Harry Truman in 1950. On March 1, 1954, the four took a train from New York City to Washington, D.C., arriving at Union Station shortly after noon. > At the Capitol they entered the gallery alongside a group of sixth graders from Maryland and watched the representatives debate an immigration bill. At approximately 2:32 p.m., the PNPR four yelled “Viva Puerto Rico libre!” as they pulled out .38 caliber pistols, and began firing. > U.S. Representative Alvin M. Bentley (R-Mich.) took a bullet to the chest. A bullet struck Iowa Republican Ben F. Jensen in the back and Clifford Davis (D-Tenn.) suffered a wound in the leg. The gunfire also wounded Democrats George Hyde Fallon of Maryland and Kenneth A. Roberts of Alabama. Amid the chaos, members took quick action.