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'We both need to come together' | Retired Major General shares perspective on Capitol attack

Retired Major General Robert Parker, who served in the Air Force for 33 years, said he considers the Capitol attack a riot and terrorism.

SAN ANTONIO — The violence that erupted at the U.S. Capitol set off fiery responses from citizens and lawmakers. 

Among the lawmakers who responded on Twitter was newly elected U.S. representative Tony Gonzales. He tweeted: “I served our country because this does not happen here. It happens in war zones. America is resilient. We will overcome this divide. Violent protestors are not patriots."

KENS 5 spoke with retired Major General Robert Parker to get his perspective as a veteran. Parker served in the United States Air Force for 33 years. He was the commander of the 20th Air Force (Air Force Space Command), and dual-hatted as the ICBM Task Force commander for U.S. Strategic Command.

Credit: U.S. Air Force

“Every veteran will tell you that when they wear the uniform of our country, they know they’ll make sacrifices. But they also, defend our democracy and it’s worth the sacrifice and the death – like some of them did,” said Parker.

The retired major general said he considers the Capitol attack a riot and terrorism.

“We defend the constitution and the right to protest. You cross that line when you start taking over buildings, destroying property and fighting police,” he said. “Until we learn that compromise is not a dirty word, until we learn to be civil with one another -- we talk that we’re going to be civil yet we call each other names and I’m talking about both sides. We both need to come together.”

He said history can teach us that civility is difficult but possible. He points to the relationship between a republican president and democratic leader of the House.

“President Reagan. He and Tip O’Neill would have cigar and a shot of whiskey and they would come out with an agreement. Neither side won everything they wanted but both sides won something,” he said. “We can’t let the legacy of our forefathers, WWII and before, be ruined by a small group.”

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