While presidents typically do not deliver an official State of the Union address in the opening months of their first term, Biden’s administration is considering an address to a joint session…
Acting US Capitol Police Chief Yogananda Pittman warned Thursday that militia groups involved in the January 6 insurrection want to “blow up the Capitol” and “kill as many members as possible” when President Joe Biden addresses Congress. Pressed by House lawmakers to provide a timeline for removing the razorwire fencing and other enhanced security measures installed after the US Capitol attack, Pittman said law enforcement remains concerned about threats by known militia groups “with a direct nexus to the State of the Union” address. “We know that members of the militia groups that were present on January 6 have stated their desires that they want to blow up the Capitol and kill as many members as possible with a direct nexus to the State of the Union, which we know that date has not been identified,” she told House lawmakers during Thursday’s hearing on security failures related to January 6. “We know that the insurrectionists that attacked the Capitol weren’t only interested in attacking members of Congress and officers,” she added. “They wanted to send a symbolic message to the nation as to who is in charge of that legislative process.” Pittman’s comments mark one of the first times law enforcement officials have publicly cited specific threats against the Capitol and lawmakers related to Biden’s expected address before a joint session of Congress. While presidents typically do not deliver an official State of the Union address in the opening months of their first term, Biden’s administration is considering an address to a joint session of Congress later this year, though a specific date hasn’t been identified. How long will fencing remain around Capitol? Pittman declined to elaborate on a timetable for removing the fencing and sending National Guard troops that remain in Washington back to their home states despite bipartisan calls to reduce the security posture around the US Capitol. “We have no intention of keeping the National Guard soldiers or that fencing any longer than what is actually needed. We’re actively working with a scaled down approach so that we can make sure that we address three primary variables,” Pittman said Thursday. “One is the known threat to the environment, two is the infrastructure vulnerabilities and then that third variable being the limitations the US Capitol’s police knows that it has as it relates to human capital and technology resources,” she added. Later in the hearing, Pittman said the fencing around the Capitol is not permanent — an idea she has previously proposed. “The temporary infrastructure is only to address the vulnerabilities after the attack of January 6.
