More National Guard troops are being deployed in Washington, DC as Trump supporters storm the Capitol
- The governor of Virginia said Wednesday he is sending additional National Guard troops, as well as hundreds of State Troopers, to DC as Trump supporters stormed the Capitol.
- The Pentagon also issued a statement announcing that the DC Guard was being activated in response to the unrest.
- Maryland's governor said Wednesday afternoon that he was sending troopers into DC to support the Metropolitan Police Department and Capitol Police.
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As a crowd of Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol Wednesday to challenge congressional efforts to certify President-elect Joe Biden's win, it was announced more National Guard troops are being deployed to Washington, DC.
Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam announced that he was sending additional National Guard troops into the city Wednesday afternoon. In addition to the Guard members, Northam said that he was sending 200 Virginia State Troopers in response to a request from DC Mayor Muriel Bowser.
The Pentagon sent out a statement shortly thereafter announcing that "the DC Guard has been mobilized to provide support to federal law enforcement in the District." The Department of Defense stated that the "law enforcement response will be led by the Department of Justice."
Both the Washington Post and ABC News reported that the entire DC National Guard was being activated in response to unrest.
The decision to deploy additional National Guard troops was made by President Donald Trump, according to White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany.
Trump spoke at Wednesday's protest prior to the march on the Capitol and spread falsehoods about the election. After a period of silence as his supporters clashed with police and forced their way into the Capitol, the president called for peace on Twitter.
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced Wednesday afternoon that he is sending in additional law enforcement to support local authorities in DC.
Ahead of the protests, 340 National Guard troops were activated in DC to support local law enforcement. The unarmed Guard troops were primarily tasked with traffic and checkpoint management.
National Guard troops were deployed to DC last summer in response to large-scale protests calling for racial justice following the death of an unarmed Black man in police custody. More than 2,000 Guard members were called in from both inside and outside DC.
At one point in early June, the Pentagon also had around 1,600 active-duty troops in position outside the city to provide additional support, but they ultimately returned home without entering the city.
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