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After four years of silently supporting or enduring President Trump, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell rebuked the president on Tuesday, blaming him for inciting the mob that carried out a deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol to l approaching Wednesday’s inauguration.
“The crowd was fed on lies,” said the Kentucky Republican.
“They were provoked by the president and other powerful people, and they tried to use fear and violence to stop a specific proceeding from the first branch of the federal government that they didn’t like,” a- he said, referring to Trump’s attempts to overthrow the Election Results.
McConnell delivered his remarks on his last day as Majority Leader – and Trump’s last day in office – as all of Washington braced for the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden.
Less than 24 hours before the start of the inaugural events, the Defense Department announced that it had removed 12 National Guard soldiers from their inaugural duties, including two for alleged links to right-wing anti-government groups, according to the media.
Federal prosecutors also revealed the first conspiracy charge stemming from the January 6 riot, as Trump gave a nearly 20-minute farewell speech in which he did not mention his successor by name, but admitted that a new administration would take power at noon on Wednesday. .
Army Gen. Daniel Hokanson, head of the National Guard bureau, said on Tuesday that some troops had been sent home because of “inappropriate comments or texts that were posted there,” but did not specify. they had said. The military and the FBI said they were working to examine the security concerns of the more than 25,000 troops deployed in Washington.
Of those who were sent home, Hokanson said 10 were identified by the FBI through standard security checks for attendees at the inauguration. Another was reported through the chain of command, and the 12th was brought to the attention of authorities “through anonymous reports.”
“Extremism is not tolerated in any branch of the US military,” Hokanson said. “If any issues are reported, our manager will resolve them immediately.”
Efforts to locate and arrest those who participated in the assault on the U.S. Capitol also continued on Tuesday, with news that federal prosecutors had filed a complaint against an alleged organizer of the anti-government militia collective known as the Oath Keepers.
Thomas Caldwell, a 65-year-old man from Virginia, is accused of helping organize a group of 10 other people, also considered militiamen, who stormed the Capitol in military uniform, according to an FBI affidavit in the case. . Members of the Oath Keepers include former military and police who believe in right-wing conspiracy theories.
The FBI alleges in the affidavit it filmed on Capitol Hill of the group Caldwell helped organize.
“These people, who wear helmets, reinforced vests and clothing with the Oath Keeper paraphernalia, move in an organized and practiced manner and make their way past the crowds gathered around a door of the United States Capitol,” ‘affidavit.
Other suspected members of the group, including Jessica Watkins and Donovan Crowl, have also been charged in the attack on the Capitol. The affidavit against Caldwell states he conspired with Watkins prior to the assault and cites online posts between the two.
The affidavit also quotes a Facebook post in which Caldwell allegedly bragged about the group “storming the castle”, referring to the Capitol.
With the grand opening just a day away, Washington continued its transformation from a city defined by iconic public spaces into a militarized complex of checkpoints, barbed wire, and inaccessible areas.
National Guard troops, tens of thousands of whom have been stationed around the White House and the Capitol, could be found patrolling sidewalks in a residential neighborhood more than a mile north of downtown Washington.
On Capitol Hill, police officers, some with guns, questioned pedestrians who lingered on street corners and asked passers-by to show their ID.
While the grand opening ceremony crowds are expected to be smaller than in previous years – and no amount of red, white and blue bunting will be able to hide the insanely large security device – those who plan to attend have expressed no reservations.
Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-Redlands), vice chair of the Democratic House caucus, said returning for the inauguration was as important as meeting the House on the night of the attack, as she worked until the wee hours of the next day to certify Biden. election.
“It’s important that anyone who doesn’t believe in November’s outcome knows that this is what America stands for: the peaceful transition of power, even if the president doesn’t want to recognize it,” said Aguilar, who was in the Capitol building when crowds of Trump worshipers stormed the building.
Joseph DioGuardi, 80, a former Republican congressman from New York City, received a COVID-19 vaccine before traveling to Washington for the inauguration, but still had to be tested for the virus once arrived on Monday.
DioGuardi considered bringing a bulletproof vest that he used to wear when traveling overseas to war zones, but was concerned this could cause problems at security checkpoints.
“I thought they might look at that vest and think you’re one of those troublemakers,” he said at his Capitol Hill hotel on Tuesday.
Representative Jimmy Gomez, who was stuck in the Chamber’s gallery during the riot, said he recalled thinking, “Is this the end of our democracy?”
The Los Angeles Democrat has concerns about the safety of attending the inauguration, but said, “As a member of Congress, my job is to be in public regardless of the danger … to show people that our democracy is alive and well – that the terrorists did not win.
Although many members of Congress have received threats of violence since the storming of the Capitol, Aguilar said he did not know of any who had been dissuaded from attending the inauguration.
He said he believed Capitol Hill police would protect him, but feared security screening had found National Guard troops who needed to be dismissed.
Aguilar has already proposed legislation to fight far-right extremism in the military, only for Senate Republicans to remove the term “white nationalism” from the bill.
“It makes me want to redouble my efforts,” Aguilar said. “Obviously we have work to do.”
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