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It is not known what security changes, if any, made to Washington in preparation for the inauguration will remain permanent, or to what extent President Joe Biden’s upcoming speech at a joint session of Congress and a possible impeachment will be taken into account in security planning.
Senator Dick Durbin, a Democrat from Illinois, said the US Capitol complex “will never be the same again.”
Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser said on Tuesday there would be a “new posture” in the district, but also noted that she did not want “fences and armed troops in our city longer than necessary.” .
In a tweet on Wednesday, the mayor’s chief of staff said teams would begin tearing down fences on main streets in a “serious” manner from that evening and the process would take 36 hours. The deadline for removing the fence was to coincide with the city’s lifting of the break on an indoor eating ban. The ban is expected to end at 5 p.m. ET on Friday.
The unprecedented number of soldiers, federal police, police and protective infrastructure in the nation’s capital for the inauguration was sparked by a rally turned riot on January 6. After the rally, thousands of Trump supporters descended on Capitol Hill with hundreds or more swarming with Capitol Hill police officers protecting it, all in an effort to overturn the presidential election results.
More than 20,000 troops have been deployed to Washington for Biden’s inauguration, and more than 6,000 National Guard troops will remain beyond.
A federal official familiar with National Guard deployments said the current plan is for many guard units to leave on Thursday. Some more regional can stay during the weekend.
“And that number may increase or decrease depending on the demands of the lead federal agency or federal law enforcement demands,” said Army General Daniel Hokanson, head of the National Guard bureau. “But really after the grand opening, we’ll look at the conditions, the environment, and the mission we’re being asked to accomplish. And if that number is less than the number of employees we have, then we’ll start to identify those. people. to get them home as quickly as possible. ”
At the Capitol, Durbin predicted that there could be metal detectors at the entrances to each legislative chamber and some “improved” perimeter of the building.
“We are coming to a point where it is – if we are to be concerned that some members are bringing guns to the ground or that visitors will do so, we need to take extra precautions,” he said.
Durbin said he had not spoken to the new Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer about placing metal detectors in front of the Senate chamber and that would be his decision.
For now, parts of the district remain largely closed. Four of the city-bound bridges are closed until Thursday morning. The National Mall, the city’s central park, is closed, covered in flags to represent U.S. citizens who cannot be there in person due to security measures and Covid-19 restrictions.
National Guard troops are stationed in neighborhoods across Washington, including Chinatown, Foggy Bottom, and the borders of Dupont and Logan Circles.
As of Wednesday, it was not clear what physical changes, if any, would become permanent around the Capitol and the district.
“But at the same time, we have to be smart about how we approach this new posture,” Hokanson said. “Unfortunately, we have had other incidents of both foreign and domestic terrorism in our country and we want to see what have been the best approaches to toughen up without appearing to toughen our security.”
CNN’s Ryan Nobles, Ali Zaslav, Phil Mattingly, Josh Campbell and Aileen Graef contributed to this report.
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