The police department that are sworn to protect the nation’s capital are about to under go microscopic review …
So far they have had 4 deaths and 17 arrests….
(52 additional arrests in the District by Wash DC police officers)
They lost their house today….
On National TV….
Their house is the office of the Congress of the United States of America ….
The department was overwhelmed by thousands of protesters sent at them from the President of the United States to overrun their posts….
The protestors were sent to get into the Congress to try to stop the acceptance of Joe Biden becoming President…
Something has to be explained on the police level…
But also on some many other levels …
Something like this hasn’t happened since 1817…..
Why?
Was it a color thing?
Was it something police reform?
Was it about manpower?
Was it about the departments culture?
Was it about bad command or intelligence?
There are going to be a lot of questions and something like this should NOT occur like this again if possible….
Nobody stopped them — and some officers were captured on videos appearing to stand back as rioters streamed inside.
On Wednesday, while police were still struggling to eject the last intruders from the Capitol, current and former law enforcement officials said it appeared the U.S. Capitol Police and other agencies had failed to anticipate the size and intentions of the crowd that Trump urged to march up Pennsylvania Avenue to where lawmakers were gathered.
On the streets of Washington, federal law enforcement agencies and the National Guard — which had been intimidatingly visible during protests this summer following the death of George Floyd — kept a much lower profile.
And at the Capitol itself, police had set out low barriers and officers were largely in street uniforms, not riot gear. All were prepared to confine a protest, but not to deter an attack, law enforcement officials said.
Law enforcement experts said they were mystified by the tactics that police used once the mob was already inside the Capitol.
One woman was shot and killed by Capitol police as officers tried to stop a group from penetrating the building, according to two law enforcement officials, who, like others interviewed for this report, spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe security operations.
But other police seemed to stand by, observing the disorder instead of stopping it: One image posted on social media showed an officer taking a selfie with one of the intruders, and a video seemed to show officers opening the security fence to let Trump supporters closer.
Police did not appear to try to detain the rioters, allowing them to leave unhindered. One even held a woman’s hand to steady her on the Capitol steps….
They should be in for a rough time. Four people died and you can see them standing aside when the crowd rushed up the stairs of the Capitol.
First, today was a coup attempt. The crowd was there to overthrow the decision of the voters and that attempt had the active support of the Republicans in Congress. Even though some of the Republican Senators chickened out at the end, the House Republicans came in strong for a proposed Trump dictatorship. Think about it. Half of the Republican caucus in the House voted to disqualify the will of the American voters,
Second, I find it hysterical that certain Republicans in the Senate (perhaps because of the Georgia runoff) decided to apologize for their total loyalty to Trump over the last four years by now finding their own voices. Now they object to his assault on democracy.
Everyone on Capitol Hill knew this was coming and this Republican mob still got into the Capitol to terrorize and trash the place. The last group that did that was in 1812. Think about how the rest of the world views these events.
The Republicans have been in league with Trump for four years and only now seem to find the things he has done are unacceptable. Not sure now why this particular form of crazy is so offensive to them when they have been silent all this time.
These issues, although it hasn’t been without effort by some of our friends here, cannot be separated from the whole party. Ted Cruz today told us that the Republicans, those 74 million people who voted for Trump, all believe the election was fraudulent. Really? That’s because Trump told them it was stolen. But, today we were told that we shouldn’t paint all those voters as bad people. Why is that?
Today was an insurrection. People broke into the Capitol Hill to break up a formal meeting to certify the election. The staff almost didn’t get the state ballots out of the House Chamber before the crowd broke in — and how many Republicans have spoken out against their President. Four, five, maybe six?
The Republicans did this in Michigan and Oregon. Today they were attempting to break into other state capitols. The Pennsylvania legislature refused to seat a legally elected Democratic State Senator because they could . These people aren’t small (d) democrats, they are autocrats.
All you have to do is listen to these creepy House Republicans and you will see that they are beyond redemption. They and Trump are the same person.
I don’t think that all of the people who voted for Trump are bad people, nor do I think that all of the people who supported the Nazis were bad people.
We all make mistakes. I can certainly think of things I did that when looked at in isolation would suggest I am a bad person. But ALL good people have one thing in common. They self-reflect and they make some commitment to at least themselves to make this a better world. And that means doing things and supporting things that are beyond your self interest.
Who knows why some people so easily justified a person who admits on camera how they grabbed women, or who isolated babies permanently from their parents and put them in cages. But at some point, if you are a good person , you self reflect, and you admit – even if only to yourself – that you were wrong, and you make the necessary changes that are not always easy to make.
Something to think about….
Jim Sciutto
@jimsciutto
“This looks like another catastrophe. You know they’re coming. You know their only potential target is this date. And you don’t make plans to secure the Capitol? What are you planning to do. If they got weapons in, we could have had dozens or 100s of members of Congress killed”1/
The head of the Capital Police is gonna be gone and the department is probably gonna be reorganised…
…
The disturbing breach of security at the U.S. Capitol is raising serious questions about the safety of lawmakers and staff who work there, and drawing criticism toward the security services who are meant to keep them safe.
Images of a mob scaling walls, breaking down fences, and storming the seat of the country’s Democracy have led to criticism that the Capitol Police should have been better prepared for the possible assault….
More….
Republicans had four years to reflect on Donald Trump and they still voted for him.
Almost half of them approve of storming the Capitol building.
By the end of WW II every German had some type of proof of what the Nazis were doing in those camps yet the majority still approved of Hitler. Were they good people?
Yesterday the Republican excuse for officially challenging the legitimate election results was “a lot of people think there was fraud.” The facts say otherwise.
Anyone who could make that statement, support that statement, or vote in favor of that statement in Congress is not a good person.
Several weeks ago I jokingly asked on my FB page “when do we think Donald Trump will burn down the Reichstag?”
The Republicans tried to yesterday. This is on them.
No – The Nazi’s and their supporters were not good people, nor are the Trump supporters.
Maybe my comment was a trivial clarification, but I object to the use of the word “All” in “we should paint all of those people as bad people.”
I have said years ago and many times since then that I believe Republicans are evil and I still believe that, but I don’t think I ever used the word “all” – even though others may have thought that word was implied. Some Republicans are just stupid or think that Fox News is the only fair and Balanced news network, and so they haven’t been exposed to real news.
I don’t know if you saw the video of the Trump voter who called into C-Span crying and asked if Trump lied to her? You could tell from her voice that she was clearly horrified when she said “I voted for him”. It may have taken too long, but that person is finally self reflecting.
Nazi membership was compulsory for many. People had no choice. In the early days, Hitler also had sympathizers such as members of the British Royal Family and Joseph Kennedy Sr in America. It took a long time for the information to get out or for people to realize the extent of his tyranny.
In regards to Trump, there are some genuinely brainwashed people in our country. We should hope for them to get well. The vast overwhelming majority of the 74 million people who voted for Trump are decent, law-abiding citizens, even if we all object to the voting decision they made. We cannot have a country without those people as part of it, as a whole, or likely in our daily lives, one way or another.
If CG believes that the “vast overwhelming majority” of people who voted for Trump are decent law-abiding citizens, would he also say that the Democrats on this site are also decent?
?🤫
all but one.
Busy today, have fun.
FBI and NYPD gave the Capitol Police ‘heads up’ before the Wednesday protests…
…
The FBI and the New York City Police Department passed information to U.S. Capitol Police about the possibility of violence during the protests Wednesday against the counting of the Electoral College vote, and the FBI even visited more than a dozen extremists already under investigation to urge them not to travel to Washington, senior law enforcement officials said.
The previously unreported details undercut the assertion by a top FBI official that officials had no indication that violence was a possibility, and they add to questions about what intelligence authorities had reviewed before the Capitol riot, which led to the death of an officer and four other people, including a rioter who was shot and killed by police….
More…
I agree Zreebs and that woman has admitted her mistake.
But you and I know, even though some of our friends here are still in denial, that the modern Republican Party electoral success was built on racial grievances. The majority of the party leadership (see yesterday’s vote in the House) and the rank & file voters share those grievances.
The video you should also look at are the folks with Trump yesterday as he prepared to go out and turn his Republican thugs loose on the Capitol. These people are haters and yes, they are all Fox educated.
But, that doesn’t change the fact that people, especially people who purport to be knowledgable about politics, know exactly what Trump and the Republican Party has been doing all these years. Their continued support tells us all we need to know.
So, it is encouraging that people have recognized the evil of this Party and the damage they have done to our Democracy. Rush is currently turning up the heat on his program. So until the Party actually admits their crimes against voting and human rights, they shouldn’t be forgiven for creating and supporting Donald J. Trump.
But, hey, Biden should have put a Republican on his Cabinet. Really? Not until they repudiate Trump.
Capitol Police report 60 of their offices suffered injuries from yesterday’s actions
CBS News
@CBSNews
D.C. Police Chief Robert Contee says 68 people arrested so far for the Capitol siege, and department is working “to identify and hold each and every one of the violent mob accountable.” Police are working with local businesses and FBI, and asking for tips to identify rioters
Jim Sciutto
@jimsciutto
Latest: US Capitol Police officer has died following pro-Trump riot
Heads WILL roll….
CNN Breaking News
@cnnbrk
US Capitol Police chief Steven Sund is resigning, an official says, in the wake of a pro-Trump mob storming the building https://cnn.it/35kMejW
Not a Good Look….
‘ We can handle it didn’t work’…..
….
The U.S. Capitol Police turned down offers for support from the National Guard and the FBI to help manage what ended up becoming a massive Capitol security breach carried out by a mob of pro-Trump supporters.
Capitol Police were contacted by the Pentagon three days before the planned event to see if they needed assistance from the National Guard, The Associated Press reports. Then as the rioters fell upon the Capitol, leaders from the Justice Department reached out to see if they needed assistance from FBI agents. Sources close to matter told the AP that both offers were turned down….
More…
Heads will roll….
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) forced out Senate sergeant-at-arms Michael Stenger one day after rioters breached the Capitol, the GOP leader announced Thursday night.
“Today I requested and received the resignation of Michael Stenger, the Senate Sergeant at Arms and Doorkeeper, effective immediately,” McConnell said in a statement.
Deputy sergeant-at-arms Jennifer Hemingway will become the acting SAA. The Senate sergeant-at-ams office didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment….
More…
While one Capitol cop has been hailed for keeping Senator’s safe from rhe crowds…
Two other’s have been suspended for the actions
Retired Lt. Gen. Russel Honoré has been tapped to lead an immediate review of the security of the Capitol complex, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Friday.
Honoré, who led the military’s response to Hurricane Katrina, will review “the Capitol’s security infrastructure, interagency processes and procedures, and command and control,” Pelosi (D-Calif.) told reporters. His investigation will follow the deadly insurrection at the Capitol Jan. 6, which has led to concerns among lawmakers about security failures and that rioters may have had inside help ahead to their assault….
More…
The acting Capitol Police chief on Tuesday offered a formal apology to Congress for the agency’s security failures during the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol by a mob of former President Trump’s supporters, acknowledging police failed to adequately prepare despite knowing in advance that armed militia groups and white supremacists posed a threat.
“I am here to offer my sincerest apologies on behalf of the department,” Yogananda Pittman, the acting Capitol Police chief, testified during a briefing with members of the House Appropriations Committee.
“On Jan. 6, in the face of a terrorist attack by tens of thousands of insurrectionists determined to stop the certification of Electoral College votes, the department failed to meet its own high standards as well as yours,” Pittman told lawmakers.
Pittman was not in charge of the Capitol Police force on Jan. 6 or in the days leading up to the riot. She has been serving as acting chief since Jan. 11…
More…
Heads to roll….
The United States Capitol Police has suspended six officers and is investigating a total of nearly 30 others in connection with their actions responding to the deadly Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
The department said in a statement shared with The Hill on Friday that the Capitol Police’s Office of Professional Responsibility is investigating a total of 35 officers, and that “Acting Chief Yogananda Pittman has directed that any member of her department whose behavior is not in keeping with the Department’s Rules of Conduct will face appropriate discipline.”
Fox’s Washington, D.C., affiliate, WTTG, first reported the investigations Thursday and CNN also reported that additional probes may take place as investigators look through social media posts and allegations that officers may have been involved in the riot itself….
More…
This is one of reasons that the Capitol Police ARE fucked….
Every time they have to make a call?
Over 500 people second guess them….
Unlike most local or state cops….
The Capitol Police have their benefactors all up in their business…
Simple decision making just isn’t possible….
At a minimum ?
That Dept needs several hundred more cops….
Lawmaker Frustration Mounts with Capitol Security
CNN: “Members of Congress have sought clarity from US Capitol Police and the Pentagon as to why the deployment of Guard troops was extended this week through May but have not been given a clear explanation, according to a source familiar with the outreach.”
“The current understanding, the source told CNN, is that US Capitol Police does not have the staffing to provide security post-January 6 even with a reduced threat, so the National Guard is bridging the gap. … The long-term security posture at the Capitol itself is the first of a host of politically thorny issues lawmakers will have to tackle, and if their current sentiment is any indication, it will not be an easy debate.”