FBI Director Christopher Wray warned on Thursday that officials are monitoring requests for “potential armed protests” in Washington DC and state capitals across the country before President-elect Joe Biden took office on January 20.
Top national security officials detailed their preparations for the inauguration in a meeting with Vice President Mike Pence. Wray said the FBI was “seeing a lot of worrying online conversations” ahead of the event, which will take place just two weeks after President Trump’s supporters broke into the U.S. Capitol in an unprecedented security breach.
“Anyone planning or attempting to practice violence in the coming weeks should expect a visit,” Wray said at the news conference. “Together with our partners here in the district and across the country, we will do everything we can to ensure a smooth transition of power in the days to come.”
Authorities stepped up security efforts before the opening in light of the riots, deploying some 21,000 National Guard members to Washington, DC, closing streets and installing security fences. The FBI has established a national command post at its headquarters to assess potential threats, as well as command posts at its dozens of field offices across the country.
The FBI identified more than 200 suspects in its investigation of the Capitol rebellion and made more than 100 arrests, according to Wray.
“We are looking at individuals who may want to repeat the same type of violence that we saw last week,” he said.
Wray added that the FBI has started releasing relevant information about potential threats “as soon as possible” to its law enforcement partners across the country.
Pete Gaynor, acting secretary of homeland security, said preparations had been underway “for more than three years” to ensure a safe opening. The police presence “covers most of downtown Washington DC”, with collaboration between the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the FBI and the Secret Service.
“We are highly confident in our security plan,” said Gaynor.
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Pence, who led the security briefing, reiterated his promise that the outgoing government would facilitate a smooth transfer of power, despite security threats.
“The American people can be sure that our government will continue to work every day between now and January 20 to ensure an orderly transition,” said Pence. “We will continue to work with all the agencies represented here and the tens of thousands of men and women who are working around the clock to ensure secure tenure for our elected president, our elected vice president and all the American people.”