City preps for possible armed protests before inauguration
TRENTON » New Jersey’s capital city is prepared for the possibility of violent protests this weekend.
“Our police force will be out in full force,” Mayor Reed Gusciora told The Trentonian, “and we are working with the sheriff’s department as well as State Police, and the governor has the National Guard at the ready if necessary.”
All 50 state capitols on Sunday, the FBI reportedly warned, may experience armed demonstrations from domestic terrorists sympathetic to Republican President Donald Trump’s “Stop the Steal” rally cry.
The U.S. House of Representatives impeached Trump for a historic second time on Wednesday, alleging the lame-duck president had incited deadly violence at the U.S. Capitol complex Jan. 6.
Trump lost re-election last fall, but the outgoing commander-in-chief has repeatedly declared victory, pushed false narratives of widespread election fraud and urged members of Congress and Vice President Mike Pence to stop Democratic President-elect Joe Biden from taking office Jan. 20.
“Unfortunately the president is doing the equivalent of yelling fire in a movie theater,” Gusciora said of Trump. “We are hoping New Jersey knows better and most New Jerseyans will respect the election results. It is just unfortunate that we have a president who is unwilling to recognize the truth and move on into a transition of power.”
In addition to a bolstered police presence, “Streets around the Statehouse will be closed to traffic,” Gusciora said of Trenton’s law-enforcement plan for Sunday. “We are also going to be closing streets off close to City Hall. We hope it keeps any protests from getting out of hand. It is the American way to allow freedom of speech, but not the kind of speech that would incite a riot.”
Americans have a constitutional right to bear arms, but New Jersey does not permit civilians to march with an armed show of force down West State Street.
“We don’t have open carry laws,” Gusciora said, “so if protesters want to do something like that, they are more than welcome to go to Oklahoma. They should honor the election results, and if they object to the results, they need to take part in political discourse and save it for another day.”
Gov. Phil Murphy at a coronavirus press briefing on Monday acknowledged armed protesters may demonstrate here in the state capital.
“We’re very much aware of the disgust protests on Jan. 17th and I think on Jan. 20th as well, but more likely on the 20th in the nation’s capital,” he said, adding, “We’re taking nothing for granted.”