National Guard troops flood U.S. Capitol
Extraordinary images Wednesday of National Guard troops lining the interior of the U.S. Capitol in an all-hands on deck effort to fortify security after last week’s deadly riot.
Some National Guard members were seen sleeping on the floor near their weapons.
The startling images came as the House of Representatives began debate on Wednesday on impeaching President Donald Trump for his role in last week’s violence.
Washington is reeling from the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol by Trump loyalists, and authorities are scrambling to head off possible civil unrest during Joe Biden’s Jan. 20 swearing-in at the Capitol.
As many as 15,000 National Guard troops have been ordered to Washington, D.C., to secure the city.
On Tuesday, top Democrats after a closed-door briefing, warned that even more needed to be done, saying in a statement that quote “we have grave concerns about ongoing and violent threats to our democracy.”
And it’s not just the U.S. Government taking urgent measures, home-sharing giant Airbnb said Wednesday it is blocking and cancelling all hotel reservations in the Washington DC Metro area during the week of the inauguration, saying that it learned of reports Tuesday that armed militias and known hate groups were attempting to travel to the area to disrupt the inauguration.
