Former FBI chief James Comey warned that Joe Biden’s tenure is under threat from “armed and disturbed” people after the Capitol riot.
The controversial spy chief Comey – who was fired by Donald Trump in 2017 – said the threat must be taken “very, very seriously” after five people died in the mob attack on January 6.
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FBI intelligence warned that there continued to be a continuing threat of violence before Biden’s oath on January 20, when Washington DC was put in blockade.
President Donald Trump has been accused of inciting violence after spreading false allegations of electoral fraud.
The charges resulted in his second impeachment last week, when 10 Republicans turned against him – making the vote the most bipartisan in history – despite his new calls for peace.
Comey told Sky News: “I am concerned because there are armed and disturbed people who are in that state of mind where they believe their country is being taken away from them.
“So it’s a threat that law enforcement in the United States must take very seriously.
“At the same time, I know that we have the investigative and tactical capacity in place to protect these locations and, therefore, I am optimistic that the threat will be neutralized, but this should be taken very, very seriously.”
National Guard troops were dispatched to Washington DC in unprecedented numbers, with the scenes being compared to a war zone.
The FBI warned of the possibility of “armed protests” in all 50 states for Biden’s possession – with ten also deciding to send the National Guard.
Several are also closing their capitals as they prepare for attacks on more fanatical pro-Trump mobs – many of whom have convinced themselves that Democrats have “stolen” the election.
Thousands of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol in DC on January 6 – fearing that many were armed and planning to take hostages – while Congress certified the electoral college votes.
It was just a failure and we need to know why at all levels, so we don’t let it happen again
James Comey
Lawmakers – including Vice President Mike Pence – had to be taken to a secret location while protesters managed to breach the Senate chamber and break into Capitol offices.
The police found themselves outnumbered and with fewer weapons, with about five dozen policemen injured in the violence.
The Department of Justice has opened 275 cases as arrests increase across the United States.
Comey said he was “disgusted” by the violence and furious at the failure to defend the Capitol, considered the seat of democracy in the United States.
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He said: “I was irritated by the apparent failure to defend a hill, [the Capitol] sits on a hill with 2,000 police officers assigned to it daily, the lack of defense on the hill.
“It just confuses and annoys me.
“It will be important for our country to understand this failure.”
Comey added: “9/11 was told that it was a lack of imagination, we did not foresee how the terrorists could come to us; it did not require imagination.
“It was all over the internet and the group literally walked slowly down Pennsylvania Avenue towards the Capitol, so it was just a failure and we need to know why at all levels so we don’t let it happen again.”
The former FBI chief is a vocal critic of Trump and was fired by the president while the agency investigated Russian meddling in the 2016 elections.
Trump’s allies accused him of messing up the investigation, and yesterday Senator Lindsey Graham called his investigation one of the “most corrupt in history”.
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Comey’s FBI attacked by Graham
LINDSEY Graham attacked the FBI investigation into alleged links between Donald Trump and Russia.
He called him the “most corrupt” in history when he released the transcripts of the Senate review interviews.
Senator Graham, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, released hundreds of pages of transcripts of the investigation into the investigation that was dubbed “Hurricane Crossfire” by the FBI.
The initial FBI investigation investigated whether members of Trump’s 2016 campaign were colluding with the Russians to influence the election.
The investigation was later handed over to Special Counsel Robert Mueller, whose report found no evidence of the conspiracy, but did not exonerate Trump.
Mueller’s investigation found that Russia tried to interfere in the election to benefit Trump, but was unable to determine whether there was collusion with the campaign.
Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, released the transcripts of interviews conducted with FBI and Justice Department officials by the committee between March 3 and October 29, 2020.
In a statement, Graham said, “I believe Hurricane Crossfire was one of the most incompetent and corrupt investigations in the history of the FBI and DOJ.”
Graham criticized the FBI leadership under James Comey and Andrew McCabe, saying he was “grossly incompetent” or that he “knowingly allowed tremendous acts”.
FBI Director Christopher Wray said the agency has made more than 100 arrests so far and that more than 200 suspects have been identified.
Questions are being asked about the police response and Democrats are calling for the accountability of Republicans who help spread the falsehoods that led to the violence.
The scenes shocked the United States and the world as many leaders condemned them, while rivals from America, Russia, China and Iran celebrated chaos.
And as Trump has been impeached, the former TV star is furiously looking for a way to punish the ten Republicans who have turned against him.
Trump called on his aides to inform him of the ten rebels while demanding to know “if he had already done anything for them”.
The president is not expected to appear in office and will instead leave Washington on the morning of January 20.
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After losing control of the House, the Senate and the White House, Republicans face the task of reconstruction, going through the middle of the 2022 term and the 2024 elections.
There is likely to be a divide between the more traditional groups and pro-Trump supporters – with the future of the 45th president in the party likely to be determined in the coming weeks.
At least 17 Republican senators would have to turn against Trump to convict him in an impeachment trial, and it has been suggested that up to 20 are open to the idea.
The Senate may also prevent Trump from returning to public office, which could lessen his influence within the Republican Party.
Trump’s speech at the “Save America” rally on January 6 is considered by many to be a catalyst for violence, while he urged his supporters to march on the Capitol.
It is feared that the riot could have been much worse if lawmakers had not been evacuated, with shocking scenes like a gallows being raised nearby and shouts of “hang Mike Pence”.
Pence became the subject of the ire of Trump supporters, as he failed to intervene on behalf of the president to secure him a second term.
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FBI officials are investigating whether there may have been an element of “internal work” in the riot as MAGA protesters navigated the labyrinth of corridors with ease.
NBC reports that the feds are investigating $ 500,000 bitcoin payments, apparently by a French citizen, to key figures and alt-right groups
Democratic spokeswoman Nancy Pelosi warned that members of Congress could face prosecution if it was discovered that they “helped and incited” the crowd.
His comments came after Mikie Sherrill, a Democratic Congresswoman from New Jersey, said she saw colleagues leading groups on Capitol “recon” trips.
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Trump called for peace – despite refusing to grant or admitting that the election was not rigged – while he detonated the violence.
“I unequivocally condemn the violence we saw last week,” he said.
Violence and vandalism have absolutely no place in our country and nowhere in our movement ”.
Trump has since been banned from Twitter and many other social media platforms as outrage has grown over claims that he has stirred up the crowd.