DC mayor ‘extremely concerned’ about safety at Biden inauguration after Capitol riot
Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser has requested a security overhaul ahead of President-elect Joe Biden’s upcoming inauguration amid safety concerns following last week’s attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Bowser on Saturday wrote a letter to U.S. Department of Homeland Security Acting Secretary Chad Wolf saying she’s “extremely concerned” about the Jan. 20 event and asking that the department “adjust its approach” to Biden’s inauguration amid continued threats of violence in the district.
“We believe strongly that the 59th Presidential Inauguration on January 20 will require a very different approach than previous inaugurations given the chaos, injury and death experienced at the United States Capitol during the insurrection,” she wrote in the letter.
On Wednesday, a mob in support of President Donald Trump — who has continually made false and unfounded claims of voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election — stormed the Capitol as Congress was convened to certify the results of the Electoral College.
Rioters broke through police lines and breached the building — scaling walls, smashing windows, breaking into the U.S. Senate chamber and reaching the doors of the U.S. House of Representatives chamber.
Five people have died as a result of the siege. One woman was fatally shot in the Capitol and three other people died of medical emergencies in the area. A Capitol Police officer died Thursday from injuries he sustained during the attack, officials say.
Dozens of other law enforcement officers were injured and dozens of arrests have been made.
The attack has sparked concerns about more violence leading up to Biden’s inauguration. Calls for more unrest have been found online, including talks of a “Million Militia March” that would disrupt Biden’s inauguration, The New York Times reports.
Bowser wrote in the letter that she will be reaching out to local, regional and federal agencies “to enhance cooperation among our bodies” and asked that DHS “adjust its approach” to the inauguration in multiple ways.
First, she requested that the department expand the National Special Security Event period from Monday until Jan. 24, the Sunday after the inauguration.
“This is an increase from the current period of January 19 to January 21, 2021, which will allow for better Federal and District government interagency preparation for the Inauguration, given the new threats from insurgent acts of domestic terrorists,” she wrote.
She asked that the department make an early disaster declaration to “enhance and expedite direct federal assistance needed to prepare for the Inauguration.”
Bowser also urged DHS to coordinate with the Defense Department, the Justice Department, Congress and the U.S. Supreme Court to “establish a security and federal force deployment plan for all federal property” so the Metropolitan Police Department can focus on “its local mission in the District’s eight wards.”
“Earlier this week, MPD officers acted heroically rushing to back-up the United States Capitol Police to stop the assault on the United States Capitol,” she wrote. “Consistent with established protocols and practices, it is the primary responsibility of the federal government to secure federal property in these situations.”
Additionally, Bowser requested that the FBI give D.C. law enforcement agencies daily briefings on intelligence and threats.
“Further, I am requesting that the Secretary of the Department of Interior cancel any and all Public Gathering Permits in the District of Columbia and deny any applications for Public Gathering Permits during the period of January 11 – 24, 2021,” she wrote.
Bowser has already declared a state of emergency in the district that will run until 3 p.m. Jan. 21.
In an interview with CBS’s “Face The Nation,” Bowser said “this inauguration preparation has to be different than any other inauguration with only 10 days to go” when asked if the district was ready.
The swearing in of Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris is already expected to look different than other inauguration events due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Tickets will be limited to members of the 117th Congress and one guest each. That’s roughly 1,000 people. Normally, members of Congress would distribute 200,000 tickets to their constituents. Other related events will either be held virtually or have been canceled.
This story was originally published January 11, 2021 at 9:35 AM with the headline "DC mayor ‘extremely concerned’ about safety at Biden inauguration after Capitol riot."
