Virginia declared a state of emergency Wednesday after a mob of President Donald Trump’s supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol Building in an effort to overturn his loss in November’s election. The entirety of the Washington, D.C., National Guard will also be activated.
“The D.C. Guard has been mobilized to provide support to federal law enforcement in the District. Acting Secretary Miller has been in contact with Congressional leadership, and Secretary McCarthy has been working with the D.C. government. The law enforcement response will be led by the Department of Justice,” Jonathan Hoffman, chief Pentagon spokesman, said in a statement. CNN reported that FBI agents have also been sent to the Capitol to help authorities regain control of the situation.
According to The Washington Post’s Dan Lamothe, about 1,100 guardsmen will be on active duty in the nation’s capital. D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser also instituted a curfew of 6 p.m. for both Wednesday and Thursday nights after the Capitol break-in. Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan subsequently announced that his state would be sending National Guardsmen to "assist the Metropolitan Police Department and the United States Capitol Police." Virginia will also be sending its National Guard and 200 state troopers to the nation's capital, according to Jonathan Martin of The New York Times.
The president’s supporters were able to enter the Capitol building with little pushback from Capitol or Metropolitan D.C. police.
Read it at The Washington Post
