IN A STATE OF ALARM
US capital locked down amid fears over armed protests by extremists
Washington DC and other US cities were braced for possible armed protests yesterday as Donald Trump’s presidency entered its final days.
Washington was locked down and thousands of National Guard troops deployed as officials geared up for pro-Trump marches in all 50 state capitals before Joe Biden’s inauguration at the White House on Wednesday.
The preparations hope to prevent the kind of violence that saw right- wing rioters storm Washington’s Capitol on January 6, following false claims of voter fraud by the president.
Michigan, Virginia, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Washington were among the states that activated their National Guards after the FBI warned of potential armed demonstrations.
Steve McCraw, director of the Texas department of public dafety, said in a statement on Friday that intelligence indicated “violent extremists” may seek to exploit planned armed protests in Austin to “conduct criminal acts”.
The scramble for security followed the deadly January 6 attack by extremists, some of whom planned to kidnap members of Congress and called for the death of vice pesident Mike Pence as he presided over the certification of Biden’s election victory.
Much of the focus is on today, when the ant i- government “boogaloo” movement plans to hold rallies in all 50 states.
The potential unrest comes after a week in which Trump became the first US president to be impeached twice. He now faces a Senate trial, on a charge of “incitement of insurrection” linked to the invasion of the Capitol.
In Michigan, a fence was erected around the Capitol in Lansing and troopers were mobilised from across the state to bolster security.
Michigan state police director Joe Gasper said: “We are prepared for the worst but we remain hopeful that those who choose to demonstrate at our Capitol do so peacefully.”
The perception that the January 6 insurrection was a success could embolden domestic extremists, spurring them to further violence, according to a government intelligence bulletin last week.
The Joint Intelligence Bulletin, produced by the FBI, Department of Homeland Security and National Counterterrorism Center, further warned that “false narratives” about electoral fraud would serve as an ongoing catalyst for extremist groups.
Thousands of armed National Guard troops were in the streets in Washington in an show of force after the assault on the Capitol.
Bridges into the city were to be closed, along with dozens of roads.
The National Mall and other iconic landmarks were blocked off and Biden urged Americans not to travel to the capital because of the pandemic.
It has also emerged that Biden is to make his first visit to Britain as US president by pitching up at the seaside in St Ives with Boris Johnson.
The two leaders will meet up in June in Cornwall when the UK hosts the G7 summit at neighbouring Carbis Bay. The PM plans to use the gathering of the heads of the world’s seven most industrialised nations to urge more international cooperation in combating Covid variants and on an early warning system for disease outbreaks.
Johnson said: “Cornwall is the perfect location for such a crucial summit.
“Two hundred years ago its tin and copper mines were at the heart of industrial revolution and this summer Cornwall will again be the nucleus of great global change.”