Thousands of National Guard soldiers will remain in Washington, DC through President Trump
Donald TrumpNYT: Deputy Perry played a role in Trump’s alleged plan to expel AG Arizona GOP censors leading state Republicans McCain, Flake and Ducey Biden and the UK Prime Minister discuss NATO, multilateralism during call MOREimpeachment trial, four unidentified sources told Politico.
With the ex-president’s Senate trial scheduled to begin on February 8, the Pentagon is reportedly concerned about the possibility of mass demonstrations in the city.
Up to 5,000 soldiers will remain in the country’s capital until mid-March, the media reported. The Guard had already been dispatched after the January 6 deadly riots by pro-Trump mobs seeking to overturn the results of the 2020 elections.
Guard members, in turn, contested what they see as an unclear mission.
“Frankly, this is not a ‘combat zone’, so combat conditions should not apply,” an Afghan veteran currently deployed to the capital told Politico.
Guard members did not receive an official justification for their continued presence, two members said.
“There is no definite situation or mission statement … This is very unusual for any military mission,” added one member. “We usually receive a situation, with defined mission perimeters and at least a tentative plan for how to implement these objectives.”
The Pentagon will keep about 7,000 members of the Guard as riot security in the city until the beginning of February and remove about 2,000 until the start of the trial, according to Politico. Another member of the Guard told the news agency that the Guard “will not allow surprises”. Approximately 25,000 soldiers were in town for President Biden’s inauguration without incident.
There are also security concerns around March 4, when some supporters of the far-right QAnon conspiracy theory hope that Trump will be sworn in for a second term.
The Hill contacted the Pentagon for comment.