US capital in 'heightened threat environment' after New Year's Day attacks
Law enforcement and security agencies in and around Washington are bringing in reinforcements as they prepare to secure three high-profile events in the nation's capital, following the New Year's Day terror attack in New Orleans and the Cybertruck bombing in front of the Trump International Hotel in Las Vegas.
The first event will occur Monday, when Congress meets to certify results of the presidential election four years to the day since the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot.
The second will be the state funeral for the late President Jimmy Carter, starting with a ceremony and procession on Tuesday before wrapping up on Thursday.
The last high-profile event will come Jan. 20, when President-elect Donald Trump is inaugurated.
"That has never happened before. We have three [National Special Security Events] over a 15-day period," Matt McCool, U.S. Secret Service Washington Field Office special agent in charge, told reporters Friday.
"But what I will tell you is we're flexible. We're adaptable. We've been working on these events for, in some cases, years," he said. "So, we're going to be prepared."
Despite concerns stemming from the New Orleans attack and the Las Vegas bombing, security officials are confident so far that the Washington events will proceed safely.
"We are not tracking any credible or specific threats associated with these events," said David Sundberg, assistant director in charge at the FBI's Washington Field Office.
The law enforcement and security agencies, however, are not taking any chances, acknowledging that the city and the region are operating in a heightened threat environment.
The Secret Service said Friday that it was bringing in agents from across the country to boost staffing levels, which were already the highest they have been in three years.
Washington's Metropolitan Police Department said it has added to its ranks almost 4,000 officers from departments across the country.
The capital's National Guard Bureau confirmed it also has approved requests for additional support, including the provision of 500 guardsmen for the Jan. 6 election certification and liaison officers for the state funeral.
An additional request for 7,800 National Guard soldiers and airmen to assist with security for the Trump inauguration is pending.
Increased security measures, including barriers and fencing, are already up in parts of Washington and around the Capitol, but more are coming.
"A multitude of seen and unseen security measures will operate in tandem to ensure a comprehensive and seamless security plan comes to fruition," McCool said, adding that the measures will include the use of aerial drones.
"The Secret Service will use drones as part of our comprehensive security plan," McCool said. "Do not be alarmed if you see these assets during the upcoming events or training in the days ahead."
The Metropolitan Police Department said its increased security measures would go into effect starting Sunday, with the deployment of specialized officers around the city to respond to any emergencies.
The U.S. Capitol Police, whose 2,400 officers and civilian employees are responsible for protecting the Capitol and members of Congress, also said they were more prepared to handle contingencies than they were four years ago, when rioters upset with the outcome of the 2020 presidential election stormed the Capitol, forcing lawmakers to flee and injuring police officers.
About 1,560 people have been charged with federal crimes in the riot. So far, about 979 have pleaded guilty, while another 210 have been convicted.
"Our nation's capital is prepared to ensure that the legislative process will proceed without disruption, and our government will have a peaceful transfer of power," said Capitol Police Chief J. Thomas Manger, noting that the force has implemented more than 100 recommendations made following the 2021 riot.
Officials in Washington are also bracing for potential protests, saying several planned demonstrations have already gotten required permits.
"We are committed to upholding the right to peacefully assemble and protest here in our city," said Metropolitan Police Chief Pamela Smith.
"We welcome visitors to come and experience what this incredible city has to offer, but those who are intentional on unlawful activity should know that there will be consequences," Smith said. "However, as I've stated before, when we have special events, and I want to be very clear, that we will not tolerate any violence, rioting, destruction of property, or any behavior that threatens the safety and security of our city."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Voice of America
10-03-2025
- Voice of America
Crews remove ‘Black Lives Matter' street mural near White House
Construction crews began removing the large painting of the words 'Black Lives Matter' on a street one block from the White House on Monday as Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser struggles to fend off threats of encroachment from both President Donald Trump and the Republican-controlled Congress. Bowser pointed to the change on the social platform X last week, writing: 'The mural inspired millions of people and helped our city through a painful period, but now we can't afford to be distracted by meaningless congressional interference. The devastating impacts of the federal job cuts must be our number one concern.' The move shows Bowser's striking shift in tone toward Trump and congressional Republicans since the president's first term in office. Bowser, a Democrat, ordered the painting and renamed the intersection Black Lives Matter Plaza as a public act of defiance in June 2020. It came after days of chaotic protests at that location over police brutality following the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer. Her approach to the protests brought her into direct conflict with Trump. The president at the time accused Bowser of losing control of her city and threatened to invoke his power to take over the Metropolitan Police Department. He didn't follow through but declared his own multiagency lockdown that included helicopters flying at low altitudes to intimidate protesters. In Trump's second stint in the White House, Bowser has worked to avoid conflict and downplay any points of contention. She traveled to Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate to meet with the president after his election and has publicly emphasized their points of agreement, such as a mutual desire to return federal workers back to their offices full time. Trump recently revived a frequent campaign talking point about wanting a federal 'takeover' of the nation's capital, describing Washington as riddled with crime, graffiti and homeless encampments. Bowser has refused to comment on reports that the White House was preparing an executive order targeting Washington; she publicly said that the greatest threat to the so-called Home Rule autonomy was 'some of the people in Congress.' Republicans, who control both chambers of Congress, have repeatedly threatened to interfere in city affairs in large and small ways. A measure currently before Congress, named the Bowser Act, seeks to completely revoke the Home Rule Act of 1973 that grants the capital city limited autonomy. That would be deeply controversial, likely testing the strength of the three-seat GOP House majority. Some representatives have used budget riders to target Washington policies ranging from marijuana legalization to whether right turns on red lights should be legal. And some in Congress have spoken publicly of their disdain for the Black Lives Matter street painting. While Bowser and Trump agreed on returning federal workers to their offices, Trump's push to slash the federal workforce is already roiling city finances. A report last week from the city's chief financial officer predicted a $1 billion budget shortfall over the next three years due to the loss of thousands of workers from the federal government. Bowser publicly siding with Black Lives Matter activists in 2020 didn't earn her much credibility with them at the time. The local Black Lives Matter affiliate dismissed the move as 'performative wokeness' and decried Bowser as overwhelmingly biased toward police. The same activists heaped scorn on Bowser on Tuesday following her reversal. Nee Nee Taylor, a founding member of the D.C. Black Lives Matter affiliate, addressed Bowser on X on Tuesday, saying, 'You never cared about Black Lives Mattering. You painting those words were performative.'
Voice of America
24-02-2025
- Voice of America
Clint Hill, agent who leaped onto JFK's car after president was shot, dies at 93
Clint Hill, the Secret Service agent who leaped onto the back of President John F. Kennedy's limousine after the president was shot, then was forced to retire early because he remained haunted by memories of the assassination, has died. He was 93. Hill died Friday at his home in Belvedere, California, according to his publisher, Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. A cause of death was not given. Although few may recognize his name, the footage of Hill, captured on Abraham Zapruder's chilling home movie of the assassination, provided some of the most indelible images of Kennedy's assassination in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963. Hill received Secret Service awards and was promoted for his actions that day, but for decades blamed himself for Kennedy's death, saying he didn't react quickly enough and would gladly have given his life to save the president. "If I had reacted just a little bit quicker. And I could have, I guess," a weeping Hill told Mike Wallace on CBS' 60 Minutes in 1975, shortly after he retired at age 43 at the urging of his doctors. "And I'll live with that to my grave." It was only in recent years that Hill said he was able to finally start putting the assassination behind him and accept what happened. On the day of the assassination, Hill was assigned to protect first lady Jacqueline Kennedy and was riding on the left running board of the follow-up car directly behind the presidential limousine as it made its way through Dealey Plaza. Hill told the Warren Commission that he reacted after hearing a shot and seeing the president slump in his seat. The president was struck by a fatal headshot before Hill was able to make it to the limousine. Zapruder's film captured Hill as he leaped from the Secret Service car, grabbed a handle on the limousine's trunk and pulled himself onto it as the driver accelerated. He forced Mrs. Kennedy, who had crawled onto the trunk, back into her seat as the limousine sped off. Hill later became the agent in charge of the White House protective detail and eventually an assistant director of the Secret Service, retiring because of what he characterized as deep depression and recurring memories of the assassination. The 1993 Clint Eastwood thriller In the Line of Fire, about a former Secret Service agent scarred by the JFK assassination, was inspired in part by Hill. Hill was born in 1932 and grew up in Washburn, North Dakota. He attended Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota, served in the Army and worked as a railroad agent before joining the Secret Service in 1958. He worked in the agency's Denver office for about a year, before joining the elite group of agents assigned to protect the president and first family. Since his retirement, Hill has spoken publicly about the assassination only a handful of times, but the most poignant was his 1975 interview with Wallace, during which Hill broke down several times. "If I had reacted about five-tenths of a second faster, maybe a second faster, I wouldn't be here today," Hill said. "You mean you would have gotten there, and you would have taken the shot?" Wallace asked. "The third shot, yes, sir," Hill said. "And that would have been all right with you?" "That would have been fine with me," Hill responded. In his 2005 memoir, Between You and Me, Wallace recalled his interview with Hill as one of the most moving of his career. In 2006, Wallace and Hill reunited on CNN's Larry King Live, where Hill credited that first 60 Minutes interview with helping him finally start the healing process. "I have to thank Mike for asking me to do that interview and then thank him more because he's what caused me to finally come to terms with things and bring the emotions out where they surfaced," he said. "It was because of his questions and the things he asked that I started to recover." Decades after the assassination, Hill co-authored several books — including Mrs. Kennedy and Me and Five Presidents — about his Secret Service years with Lisa McCubbin Hill, whom he married in 2021. "We had that once-in-a-lifetime love that everyone hopes for," McCubbin Hill said in a statement. "We were soulmates." Clint Hill also became a speaker and gave interviews about his experience in Dallas. In 2018, he was given the state of North Dakota's highest civilian honor, the Theodore Roosevelt Rough Rider Award. A portrait of Hill adorns the Capitol gallery of fellow honorees. A private funeral service will be held in Washington, D.C., on a future date.
Voice of America
09-02-2025
- Voice of America
Chiefs chase Super Bowl 'three-peat' as Trump attends NFL showpiece
The Kansas City Chiefs aim for a historic hat-trick of Super Bowl titles on Sunday when they take on the Philadelphia Eagles in front of a star-studded crowd in New Orleans headed by U.S. President Donald Trump. Trump will become the first sitting president ever to attend the NFL showpiece when he takes his seat among a sell-out crowd of around 74,000 fans at the Superdome for the biggest annual event in the American sporting calendar, which kicks off at 5:30pm local time (2330 GMT). Pop superstar Taylor Swift will also be in the VIP seats to watch as her boyfriend Travis Kelce and his fellow Chiefs bid to become the first team in history to lift three consecutive Vince Lombardi Trophies. Trump's presence at the NFL showpiece will mean even tighter security than normal around an event which was already bolstered by a heavy police presence following a New Year's Day attack which left 14 people dead and many more injured on the Big Easy's famous Bourbon Street. Trump has had a strained relationship with the NFL stretching back several decades, and triggered uproar during his first time in 2017 when he attacked the patriotism of players who kneeled during the playing of the U.S. national anthem in a protest against racial injustice. Speaking in a pre-game interview aired on Fox News, Trump said his decision to attend this year's Super Bowl was for the good of the country. "I thought it would be a good thing for the country to have the President be at the game," Trump told Fox. "It's an iconic day. It's going to be a great game, two great teams, and let's see what happens," Trump added, revealing that he was tipping Kansas City for victory, citing the record of Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who is eyeing his fourth Super Bowl win. "When a quarterback wins as much as he's won, I have to go with Kansas City," Trump said. "I have to go with Kansas City." Trump was due to fly into New Orleans from Florida, where he reportedly played a round of golf with Tiger Woods earlier Sunday. A schedule released by the White House said he is expected to leave the Superdome at around 8.05pm local time, well before the game reaches its conclusion. Super Bowl fans on Sunday welcomed Trump's attendance at the game. "I think it is awesome, congratulations to him for being the first President to make it," Bob Benderovich, a Philadelphia Eagles fan from Fort Myers, Florida, told AFP. Chiefs favorites As always, the Super Bowl crosses over into popular culture and the half-time show this year will feature hip-hop artist Kendrick Lamar, who had a clean sweep at last Sunday's Grammys, winning in all five categories for which he received nominations. Bookmakers and casinos meanwhile are taking odds on whether Chiefs star Kelce will propose to pop icon Swift after what might be his final game in the NFL. For the more serious punters, the oddsmakers have the Chiefs as slight favorite for the game, a rematch of the Super Bowl from two years ago which the Chiefs won by three points. They defended their title last year, beating the San Francisco 49ers in Las Vegas and putting them one win away from an unprecedented "three-peat." The 29-year-old Mahomes will become one of just four quarterbacks in National Football League history to have won more than three Super Bowls should he triumph again, having first led the Chiefs to Super Bowl glory in 2020. But the Eagles have added serious offensive firepower since their defeat two years ago with mobile quarterback Jalen Hurts joined by the game-changing speed and power of running back Saquon Barkley. The Chiefs put the finishing touches to their game preparations Saturday with a 30-minute walkthrough of a mock game. Chiefs coach Andy Reid saluted his team's attitude to training over the whole week since arriving in Louisiana. "I thought the guys worked hard, they got done what they needed to get done," Reid said. The Eagles had a similarly relaxed final session before going to the Superdome on Saturday for a team photo. Head coach Nick Sirianni said his Eagles were "hungry" and "ready to roll." "We're ready for the challenge against a really good team," Sirianni said.
