WASHINGTON – The Capitol police force is preparing for another attack on the Capitol building on Thursday after obtaining information about a possible plot by a militia group, just two months after a crowd of loyal Trump members and extremists attacked the building, leaving five dead and hundreds injured.
Leaving nothing to chance, House leaders on Wednesday abruptly moved a vote on police legislation from Thursday to Wednesday night, so lawmakers could leave the city, according to a senior Democratic aide familiar with planning.
The “possible” conspiracy, as described by the Capitol Police, appeared to have been inspired by the pro-Trump conspiracy theory known as QAnon, according to a senior government official who reviewed the intelligence alert. Intelligence analysts spent weeks tracking online conversations of some QAnon supporters who clung to March 4 – the original inauguration date set out in the Constitution – as the day Donald J. Trump would be restored to the presidency and renew his crusade against enemies of America.
Some federal officials described the threats as more “aspirational” than operational. The militia group was not named, and even many influential followers of QAnon, who believe the United States is dominated by a conspiracy of Satan-worshiping pedophiles, considered March 4 a “deep state” plot to incite followers of the movement and provoke repression.
But after being taken by surprise by protesters on January 6, the Capitol Police and members of Congress seemed to be taking no chances. Representative Michael McCaul of Texas, a senior Republican on the House’s Homeland Security Committee, defended on CNN on Wednesday: “President Trump has a responsibility to tell them to step down. This threat is reliable. It’s real. It is a right-wing militia group. “
The perimeter of the Capitol had already been surrounded with a new fence, with barbed wire at the top. Capitol Police said the agency is now contacting local, state and federal law enforcement agencies to prepare more.
“We obtained intelligence that shows a possible plot to violate the Capitol by a militia group identified on Thursday, March 4,” the force said in a statement. “We are taking intelligence seriously.”
Nervous lawmakers, many still shaken by the January attack that made them flee, received many warnings this time. Yogananda D. Pittman, the acting chief of the Capitol Police, told lawmakers on Wednesday that the agency had received “worrying” information about possible threats against the Capitol on March 4, adding that threats against lawmakers “fired” . Subsequently, the Capitol Police sent an alert to lawmakers that the force was “monitoring several reports referring to possible First Amendment activities from March 4 to 6”.
Melissa Smislova, acting deputy secretary of intelligence for the Department of Homeland Security, told senators on Wednesday that the department and the FBI had issued an intelligence bulletin last night about “extremists discussing March 4 and March 6”.
Although the warning does not say definitively that militia groups plan to come to Washington, analysts said QAnon’s continued false statements of electoral fraud and narratives “can contribute” to extremists turning to violence. These extremists were inspired to target March 4 by QAnon conspirators, who said Trump would be sworn in on that date and eventually “return to power”, according to an official who asked to remain anonymous to discuss the warning.
Two federal police officers said widespread concerns about potential violence were justified, given online conversations about the QAnon conspiracy and rumors of an attack. But they said they had not seen or been informed of any specific and credible threat of an attack on politicians, the Capitol or other government symbols.
Although they felt that an organized militia group was unlikely to be able to carry out the type of attack on the Capitol described in the Capitol Police bulletin, particularly given the fortifications around Washington, they did not rule out the possibility that “wolf attackers” lone “could try to wreak havoc.
Intelligence officials are struggling to determine whether suspicious online conversations should generate public alerts about an attack that may not materialize. The issue is thorny, as much of this type of chatter is protected by the First Amendment.
Federal officials decided this time to take a more “forward-biased” approach to information sharing after federal agencies faced a widespread reaction to the failure of the security response on January 6, according to the official.
The warning shared with the Capitol Police emphasized what top law enforcement officials have said repeatedly since January 6: that the United States generally faces a heightened threat from domestic extremists encouraged by the attack on Congress.
Ms. Pittman said that threats against lawmakers increased by almost 94 percent in the first two months of the year compared to the first two months of 2020. She assured members of Congress that the police force would be ready for any potential violence on 4 March.
Christopher A. Wray, the FBI director, told senators on Tuesday that the January 6 attack was domestic terrorism and that the threat was “spreading across the country.” In a rare terrorism bulletin in January, the Department of Homeland Security warned that the attack would not be an isolated episode and that the extremists were motivated by the “presidential transition, as well as other perceived complaints fueled by false narratives,” a clear reference to the charges. made by Mr. Trump.
At the Conservative Political Action Conference on Sunday, his first public appearance since leaving office, Trump repeated his false claim that he had won the November election.
Authorities did not specify which militia group they believe is planning to attack the Capitol on Thursday. Capitol Police are asking for nearly $ 620 million for the agency’s budget, an increase of almost 21 percent from current levels, to pay for new equipment, training and another 212 officers for missions as a permanent reserve force for respond to events like the January 6 Riot. Ms. Pittman told lawmakers that she would work with the Capitol architect to design more “physical hardening” of the building after it was invaded by the rioters.
“The USCP is firm in ensuring that such an incident never occurs again,” she said, adding that “a similar incident occurring in the current environment is a very real and present danger.”
QAnon’s central tenet is that Trump was elected to face a conspiracy of Democrats, international financiers and deep-state bureaucrats who adore Satan, abuse children and seek to take over the world. When that didn’t happen while Mr. Trump was in office, some QAnon supporters began to weave elaborate conspiracy theories around March 4.
The theory, as closely associated with QAnon, is complicated and takes many forms, sometimes including secret pardons issued by President Barack Obama, the Banking Act of 1871, the Emergency Transmission System and Trump taking command of a newly restored republic . And these are not even the most bizarre elements.
The theory is far from being universally accepted among QAnon supporters. Several of the movement’s most influential voices launched the March 4 theory as a conspiracy within a conspiracy, insisting that it was a trap set by the movement’s enemies.
“March 4th is the baby of the media. Nothing is going to happen, ”wrote a QAnon influencer on Tuesday in the Telegram messaging app.
Other followers of QAnon encouraged their compatriots to be patient. “In time, you will feel and see the upheavals around you. You will know when it is safe, ”wrote one of them on Telegram. “March 4 in DC is not safe.”
A meme circulating on social media claimed that the Communist Party of China – a favorite target of QAnon – and other “bad guys” were spreading the March 4 rumors to incite QAnon followers. “Don’t fall for it. They will do everything possible to turn any peaceful protest into a riot, ”he says.
The meme also plays on the totally unmasked notion that anti-Trump forces staged the January 6 attack. “Don’t let them make another ‘Capitol Riot’,” says the meme. “Alert others.”
But as a sign that at least some people believe there is a reason to be in Washington on Thursday, Trump International Hotel’s rates for March 3 and 4 have skyrocketed to three or four times normal prices, as before January. 6
The report was contributed by Adam Goldman, Luke Broadwater, Katie Benner, Carl Hulse, Nicholas Fandos and Ben Decker.