Twelve U.S. National Guard members have been removed from securing President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration after vetting by the FBI, AP has reported. This includes two who made extremist statements in posts or texts about the Wednesday event, Pentagon officials said. There were no specific threats to Biden.
Two other U.S. officials told The Associated Press that all 12 were found to have ties with right-wing militia groups or posted extremist views online. The officials, a senior intelligence official and an Army official briefed on the matter, did not say which fringe groups the Guard members belonged to or what unit they served in. The officials were not authorized to speak publicly and spoke to The AP on condition of anonymity. The officials told the AP they had all been removed because of “security liabilities.”
Gen. Daniel Hokanson, chief of the National Guard, confirmed that Guard members had been removed and sent home but he said only two cases were for inappropriate comments or texts related to the inauguration. He said the other 10 were for other potential issues that may involve previous criminal behaviour or other activities, but were not directly related to the inaugural event.
Their removal from the massive security presence at the nation’s capital comes as U.S. defense officials have been worried about a potential insider attack or other threat from service members following the deadly riot at the U.S. Capitol Jan 6th by Trump supporters. The FBI has been working to vet all 25,000 National Guard in town. Officials have said that the Pentagon has found no intelligence so far that would indicate an insider threat.
Neither Hokanson, nor Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman would provide details on the comments or texts made by the two Guard members. Speaking at a Pentagon press conference, Hokanson said one was identified by his chain of command and the other was identified through an anonymous tip.
Washington has been on edge since the deadly insurrection at the Capitol, which has prompted extraordinary security measures ahead of Biden’s inauguration. A fire in a homeless camp roughly a mile from the Capitol complex prompted a lockdown Monday during a rehearsal for the inauguration.
U.S. Secret Service tightened security in and around the Capitol days earlier than usual in preparation, and the city center is essentially on lockdown with streets blocked, high fencing installed and tens of thousands of troops and law enforcement officers stationed around the area.
