WASHINGTON (AP) – Law enforcement was on high alert Thursday at the U.S. Capitol after authorities said intelligence had discovered a “possible plot” by a militia group to attack again. ’emblematic building. The alert came two months after Donald Trump supporters slammed windows and doors to try to prevent Congress from certifying the victory of current President Joe Biden.
The threat appeared to be related to a far-right conspiracy theory, mainly promoted by QAnon supporters, that former President Trump would return to power on March 4 and that thousands of people would come to Washington to try to oust the incumbent Democrats. March 4 was the original day of the presidential inauguration until 1933, when it was moved to January 20.
On Thursday there were no signs of nuisance in the heavily protected building, with Capitoline police and national service guards and a large fence around the perimeter being installed after the Jan. 6 riot. The Pentagon is reviewing a request to extend the deployment of the Guard by 60 days beyond the current expiration date of March 12th.
Online talks identified by authorities included discussions between members of the Three Percenters, a group of anti-government militias, over possible conspiracies against the Capitol on Thursday, according to two police officers who were not allowed to speak publicly and who spoke on condition of ‘anonymity. Members of the three percent were among the extremists who stormed the Capitol on January 6th.
The threat came as Capitol police and other law enforcement agencies received criticism from Congress in controversial hearings this week over their treatment of the Jan. 6 riot. The police were ill-prepared for the mass of Trump supporters, some with tactical equipment and armed, and it took hours for National Guard reinforcements to arrive. By then, riots had broken out in the building and roamed the halls for hours, temporarily halting Congress ’certification effort and sending lawmakers underground.
Lawmakers, Congress officials and police authorities remain on the sidelines after the Jan. 6 attack, though security at the Capitol remains at an unprecedented level.
The U.S. House finished its work during the week on Wednesday night, but the U.S. Senate still had a busy day scheduled for Thursday with votes in the evening. Police reinforced their presence in and around the Capitol. About 5,200 members of the National Guard remain in DC, the rest of the approximately 26,000 who were transferred to the inauguration of President Biden in January, who left without any problems.
Representative Michael McCaul, R-Texas, former chairman of the House National Security Committee and among those briefed on the new threat, said lawmakers were prepared.
“I think we will see some violence here,” he said in an interview.
But unlike January 6, the Capitol is now fortified against intrusions. “We have the razor wire, we have the National Guard. We didn’t have this January 6th. So I feel very confident in safety, ”he said.
Initially it seemed that the online chat did not rise to the level of concern; an advice sent earlier this week to members of Congress by Timothy Blodgett, the house’s acting gun sergeant, said Capitol police had “no indication that the groups will travel to Washington, DC, for protesting or committing acts of violence “.
But that warning was updated in a note to lawmakers Wednesday morning. Blodgett wrote that Capitol police had received “new information regarding information and intelligence that indicated additional interest in the Capitol for March 4-6 from a militia group.”
Acting Capitol Police Chief Yogananda Pittman said Wednesday during the House testimony that her investigators had collected “some intelligence-related issues,” but that she refused to provide any details publicly. saying he was “sensitive to law enforcement” and would provide a private session for the subcommittee members.
Meanwhile, federal agents found no significant increases in the number of hotel rooms rented in Washington, nor in flights to the area, nor in car rental reservations, nor in buses, a person told the Associated Press. familiar with the matter. The person was unable to publicly discuss the details of the security planning and spoke on condition of anonymity.
The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security also sent an intelligence bulletin to local police officials on Tuesday saying a group of militia extremists had debated trying to take control of the Capitol on March 4 and cheering. to thousands of people coming to DC to try to remove Democrats from power.
But there has been a noticeable decline in online activity on some social media platforms around the efforts on March 4, and there were already far fewer online talks than during January 6, a day Trump had promoted. repeatedly for gathered and encouraged thousands to come to the country’s capital.
In addition, thousands of accounts that promoted the January 6 event that sparked a violent storm at the U.S. Capitol have been suspended by major technology companies such as Facebook and Twitter, making it much more difficult for groups to organize a mass rally .
About 300 people have been charged so far with federal offenses for their roles in the riot. Five people, including a Capitol police officer, were killed.
Since his defeat, Trump has been promoting lies about election theft of him through massive election fraud, although such claims have been rejected by judges, Republican state officials, and the Trump administration itself. He was charged by the House after the January 6 riot for inciting insurrection but he was acquitted by the Senate.
___
The writers of the Associated Press, Nomaan Merchant, in Houston; Alan Fram, Mary Clare Jalonick, Colleen Long and Lisa Mascaro in Washington and Amanda Seitz in Chicago contributed to this report.