On Wednesday, as the U.S. Capitol was shockingly overrun by a mob that turned violent, members of Hawaii’s congressional delegation relayed statements confirming their safety — and expressing outrage at the president’s role in spurring on supporters who temporarily halted Electoral College deliberations.

In a tweet, U.S. Rep. Ed Case put the matter succinctly: “My staff and I are ok, but democracy is not. What a truly dark moment for our country, born of disrespect for our very foundations and institutions and incited by the highest levels of our leadership.”

Although shaken by this assault on the Capitol, it’s heartening that Congress swiftly reconvened to conclude the electoral vote count early Thursday, certifying President-elect Joe Biden’s victory. President Donald Trump has since said he will respect the results, finally. But such concession alone falls far short of what the nation needs.

Trump, who spent months fueling the anger of his extremist fans with false claims that the election was stolen, should be held accountable for fomenting insurrection. U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has called on the lame-duck president’s Cabinet to invoke the 25th Amendment, through which a president may be declared unfit for office.

In this longshot option, Vice President Mike Pence, who proved to be a steadier leader in helping to facilitate mobilization of the National Guard when Wednesday’s violence at the Capitol escalated, would serve as acting president. Trump’s initial resistance to quell the mob as supporters rampaged and damaged America’s seat of democracy prompts troubling questions about whether he essentially abdicated his role as commander in chief.

In the absence of swift Cabinet action, Congress could move forward, as Pelosi proposed, with impeachment proceedings. Already in circulation are articles of impeachment asserting that even with less than two weeks remaining in Trump’s term, allowing him to remain in office poses a “threat to national security, democracy and the Constitution.”

The main objective now is to prevent further incitement of insurrection or violence.

Within Trump’s own administration, resignations mount in Wednesday’s aftermath — including of his transportation and education chiefs and his deputy national security adviser — adding more tumult at the highest level of government, raising concerns of risk and vulnerability to the country.

Further, Trump’s supporters who carried out seditious violence must face criminal prosecution, and there should be an investigation of the failure of the Capitol Police to adequately prepare for the imminent chaos at the “People’s House.” The siege left five people dead, including a U.S. Capitol police officer, windows smashed and offices vandalized.

Any impulse to let outrage fade should be stifled. Left unchecked, this assault on our nation’s system of self-government would set unacceptable precedence for future insurrection touched off by the losers of elections in which ballot-counting is fair and square.

All living former U.S. presidents condemned the mob — and lawmakers who sought to delegitimize the presidential election results beforehand. In a statement, former President George W. Bush forcefully noted: “This is how election results are disputed in a banana republic — not our democratic republic.” Indeed, the peddling of falsehoods about elections only threatens to weaken core U.S. democracy tenets.

In a refreshing show of unity here, the Hawaii Republican Party and the Democratic Party of Hawaii, issued a joint statement asserting: “The Constitution guarantees the right to peaceful protest, and also spells out how the electoral process is to be carried out. With respect to both of these, the Constitution must be upheld and respected,” as we are a nation of laws.

It is profoundly sad that, even with our constitutional protections to ensure “orderly transition” of power, plans are underway to erect a temporary fence around the Capitol and deploy thousands of National Guard troops at the site through the Jan. 20 inauguration.

Still, former President Jimmy Carter offered a glimmer of hope in his outlook, saying in a statement: “Having observed elections worldwide, I know that we the people can unite to walk back from this precipice to peacefully uphold the laws of our nation, and we must.”