Rep. Norma Torres, D-Calif., told ABC's "Nightline" that 12 of the representatives who were locked down during the Capitol siege Wednesday are in a group chat to "to help each other heal."

"We've been working with each other through this process of healing ourselves," said Torres. "It's incredible that we survived."

Torres, who immigrated to the U.S. from Guatemala when she was 5 years old, said that Trump's decision to visit the border wall in El Paso, Texas, rather than address the Capitol riots or ongoing pandemic, was personally hurtful.

"The president of the United States chooses to close out his four-year term by continuing to incite racism, promote racism and incite violence against Americans like myself," she said.

On Wednesday, Torres made an emotional plea on the House floor to Vice President Mike Pence to invoke the 25th Amendment and remove Trump from office.

"It is not about my life. It is not about his life. Members of Congress come and go. So will presidents and vice presidents. But our Constitution is to stand in," she told ABC News after her passionate speech. "Our democracy is worth it, (it) is worth upholding. And this is the moment where courage under fire means something."

As the House begins voting Tuesday evening, some Republican members are furious about the installation of metal detectors, accusing Democrats of trying to score political points and diverting Capitol Police resources.

When Rep. Rodney Davis, R-Ill., the top Republican on the Committee on House Administration, complained to Majority Leader Steny Hoyer in front of reporters, Hoyer said, "Rodney, we're all going through magnetometers."

Davis shot back, "I just went through one. You know the threat on the interior side of the building. You're taking valuable resources completely away from where it needs to be, and you did it without any consultation with the minority."

"Don't touch me," Rep. Steve Womack, R-Ark., said to a Capitol Police officer.

Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., a conservative whose insistence on carrying a gun around Capitol Hill has alarmed Democrats -- and some members of her own party -- refused to allow Capitol Police officers to search her bag. After a couple of minutes she was allowed into the chamber, but it's not clear if she was searched, according to pool reporters on the scene.

-ABC News' Benjamin Siegel

In a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Vice President Mike Pence said he would not invoke the 25th Amendment and remove the president.

"I am grateful for the leadership that you and other congressional leaders provided in reconvening Congress to complete the people's business on the very same day. It was a moment that demonstrated to the American people the unity that is still possible in Congress when it is needed most," he wrote. "But now, with just eight days left in the President's term, you and the Democratic Caucus are demanding that the Cabinet and I invoke the 25th Amendment. I do not believe that such a course of action is in the best interest of our Nation or consistent with our Constitution."

He continued, "Last week I did not yield to pressure to exert power beyond my constitutional authority to determine the outcome of the election, and I will not now yield to efforts in the House of Representatives to play political games at a time so serious in the life of our Nation."

In conclusion, he urged Pelosi and members of Congress to avoid actions that would further divide and inflame the passions of the moment.

"Work with us to lower the temperature and unite our country as we prepare to inaugurate President-elect Joe Biden as the next President of the United States. I pledge to you that I will continue to do my part to work in good faith with the incoming administration to ensure an orderly transition of power. So help me God," he wrote.

The House of Representatives is debating a resolution urging Vice President Mike Pence to invoke the 25th Amendment and remove Trump from office over his role in last week's attack on the Capitol.

With Democrats holding a majority in the chamber, the measure is expected to pass. However, Pence given no public indication that he plans to take action.

Democrats are expected, then, to move forward with impeaching Trump on one article -- charging him with "inciting an insurrection." At least 218 Democrats and three House Republicans have indicated their support to impeach the president.

-ABC News' Mariam Khan

Democrats and Republicans are expected to debate for one hour -- equally divided between Democrats and Republicans -- before a procedural vote ahead of the chamber beginning debate on the impeachment article itself.

Democrat Rep. Jim McGovern, the chairman of the House Rules Committee, setting up that preliminary vote on the terms of the debate, called the Capitol a "crime scene" and the rioters "traitors" and "domestic terrorists" in an assault instigated by Trump, emphasizing, "We wouldn't be here if it weren't for the president of the United States."

McGovern described the day as "a ceremonial role for the Congress -- one that sends a message to the world that democracy persists -- but at a rally a mile and-a-half down Pennsylvania Avenue, Donald Trump was stoking the anger of a violent mob," he began. "He said Vice President Pence has to come through and told the mob to walk down to the Capitol."

"The signal was unmistakable. These thugs should stage a coup so Donald Trump can hang on to power, the people's will be damned. This beacon of democracy became the site of a vicious attack. Rioters chanted, 'Hang Mike Pence,' as a noose and gallows were built. Capitol Police officers were beaten and sprayed with pepper spray. Attackers hunted down lawmakers to hold them hostage or worse," McGovern continued.

"I saw evil, Mr. Speaker. Our country came under attack, not from a foreign nation but from within," he added. He also slammed Republicans for preaching unity from members who voted to overturn a free and fair election.

Republican Rep. Tom Cole -- one of the lawmakers who object to Electoral College results after the violent seige -- called Jan. 6 the "darkest day" of his long career in Washington, but said Democrats, instead of promoting unity, are looking to "divide us further" by pursuing Trump's impeachment.

Cole did not directly defend Trump's actions or rhetoric but argued in Congress, one week before Biden's inauguration, sets up a "flawed process."