Members of the National Guard stand guard in Washington, DC, Jan. 19, 2021.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) on Monday (Jan. 18) criticized the U.S. Department of Defense, FBI and Secret Service (USSS) for vetting the backgrounds of National Guard members stationed in Washington, DC, calling the initiative offensive.
In a statement, Abbott said, “This is the most offensive thing I have ever heard, and no one should question the loyalty or professionalism of the Texas National Guard.”
“If they are treated with such disrespect, I will never do so again.” Abbott said Texas sent more than 1,000 National Guard personnel to Washington, D.C., to help secure the nation’s capital ahead of President-elect Joe Biden’s Jan. 20 inauguration.
The U.S. Army confirmed Monday that as many as 25,000 National Guard members will be stationed around Washington, D.C., around Inauguration Day 20, and that members of the Army will work with the FBI and Secret Service to determine which Army personnel supporting the inauguration’s special national security activities will require “additional background checks.
Acting Defense Secretary Christopher Miller said Monday that all National Guard personnel in Washington, D.C., will be vetted and that “while we have no intelligence that there is an insider threat, we are doing everything we can to ensure the capital is secure.”
Miller said having 25,000 troops stationed in Washington, D.C., is an unprecedented show of force intended to deter any subsequent plans for a Jan. 6 break-in at the Capitol. He said, “This type of scrutiny is usually done by law enforcement for major security incidents. However, in this case now, the scope of military involvement has never been greater. When military personnel arrive in Washington, D.C., the D.C. National Guard is also providing them with additional training, and if they see or hear something inappropriate, they report it to their chain of command.”
Acting Homeland Security Secretary Peter Gaynor told Fox News, “I think everyone is rightfully sensitive and wants to make sure they do everything they can [to protect the nation’s capital]. Yet given the time and the circumstances, given the circumstances of Jan. 6, the decision by the FBI and others was a prudent move.”
Both Miller and Gaynor said that so far the department has no evidence that an alleged insider attack would be premeditated on Jan. 20 or that an attack from within the National Guard would be directed against the U.S. government.
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