Pro-Trump rallies ‘will be wild’
A city accustomed to mass protests is gearing up for especially intense ones over what should be the most mundane of political events: the counting of Electoral College votes during a special joint session of Congress.
At the urging of US President Donald Trump, his diehard supporters are planning to descend on Washington, DC on January 6 to pressure Republican lawmakers into aligning themselves with the doomed effort to overturn Joe Biden’s electoral victory.
Shouting matches, verbal harassment of Trump opponents and even knife fights accompanied previous demonstrations following Biden’s election win in November. Now federal and local law enforcement are bracing for what may be the most intense Trump protest yet as Congress is poised to formally declare Biden president-elect.
Various pro-Trump groups are promoting the demonstrations online. One called #StopTheSteal operates the website WildProtest. com, which proclaims: ‘‘Be there, will be wild.’’ It is supported by incoming Republican members of Congress Lauren Boebert and Marjorie Taylor Greene.
The United States Park Police confirmed that the permits had been approved for three protests.
It did not comment on specific security measures it will take to keep the peace.
On the social media app Parler and far- right message boards, members of the Proud Boys group have discussed organising in Washington – with one leader, Enrique Tarrio, suggesting that they will be incognito.
‘‘We will not be wearing our traditional Black and Yellow. We will be incognito and we will spread across downtown DC in smaller teams,’’ he wrote.
Tarrio also suggested that the group may dress in all-black gear at night, a style similar to the tactic used by Antifa groups who often combat the Proud Boys.
Other groups are planning to demonstrate at the Capitol itself as the House and Senate count Electoral College votes.
At least 140 sitting and incoming Republican members of the House of Representatives will also challenge Congress’s official count of the Electoral College vote, ensuring that Congress will be forced to debate the issue when lawmakers convene for the joint session.
Many restaurants and office buildings in downtown Washington are already boarded up, just as they were for demonstrations last year about racial injustice and, more recently, last November’s presidential election.
Trump, who this week cut short his end- of- the- year trip to South Florida and returned to the White House, has promoted the January 6 protests by his backers. ‘‘JANUARY SIXTH, SEE YOU IN DC!’’ he tweeted on Thursday. He has not said whether he plans to attend any of the rallies.
Normally, Congress’s task of recording the electoral votes and formally declaring a winner in the Electoral College is a formality. This year, pro-Trump congressional factions have vowed to challenge the electoral votes in certain swing states that went for Biden. That will trigger debates in both the House and Senate, though the outcome is not in doubt.
In pressuring Congress, Trump and his supporters have voiced the same unfounded claims they made in previous lawsuits and state election complaints. A variety of judges and state election officials, including Republicans, dismissed those claims.
Many pro-Trump rallies across the US have seen violence between the president’s supporters and police and counterprotesters. During a day of demonstrations on December 12 last year, at least four people were stabbed during a melee in downtown Washington.
Trump supporters have included groups like the Proud Boys and other organisations the FBI has labelled extremists who believe in white nationalism. Some have roamed the streets taunting people, looking for confrontations.
Some Republicans have denounced Trump’s calls to overturn the election result, saying he is playing with fire that could flare into violence by his most fervid supporters, especially during the Electoral College count.