A Startling Thread on the National Guard Presence in Washington, D.C., for Inauguration Day

The timeline and nature of events on January 6th at the Capitol continue to unfold. However, because of what happened that day and what federal law enforcement sees as credible threats, the security around Inauguration Day is taking on an ominous tone with at least 20,000 National Guard troops deployed. Jack Murphy is a political commentator and a resident of Washington, D.C. This morning, he put out a Twitter thread about his observations of what is happening in the nation’s capital.

To put it bluntly, members of our military have been deployed on American soil in what appears to be a temporary occupation around the area of the inauguration. The Secret Service has established a “Green Zone” in the heart of the city, and bridges leading into Washington, D.C., will be closed beginning Tuesday. Virginia State Police and the National Guard will be checking reasons for entry.

Murphy also notes that National Guard members are in full uniform, including ballistic helmets, and are armed. This is not typical when the Guard is deployed because there are genuine concerns about the optics of the U.S. military being deployed against Americans on U.S. soil. The Ohio National Guard firing on students at Kent State, killing four and wounding nine in 1970, still lives large in the national memory.

Official statements from Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy confirmed they were considering letting the National Guard carry weapons. National Guard leaders say troops have deployed with all of their equipment, and it will be up to local commanders to determine if they will be authorized to carry them. The military is prohibited from acting in a law enforcement capacity, so the decision is predicated on personal safety.

The military presence is in addition to Airbnb suspending all reservations around the inauguration and the major airlines banning all firearms on flights into the city. This should set off alarm bells for everyone. The decision to do this is based on intelligence, with a wide range of between 2,000 and 80,000 people planning to protest the inauguration. If you or someone you know is planning on doing this, please don’t.

It is almost certain agitators will be present to whip up the crowd. You can bet some of the people who found themselves inside the Capitol last week would never have seen themselves doing that. Crowd dynamics are an unpredictable phenomenon, and without leaders or a group to set and enforce the ground rules, they can go sideways. We watched this happen all summer.

The nation has already witnessed a young woman shot and killed in the Capitol building. If you think a deeply divided nation can tolerate much more without completely falling apart, you need to read more history. Going to Washington to LARP 1776 again is possibly the most dangerous act one could participate in and threatens all Americans’ freedom and security.

If you are one of the provocateurs on the internet passing off QAnon memes as e-mails or information you got from someone in the military or the government, you are an enemy of the republic. I have been sent three today from Facebook friends, and they are simply insane. President Trump is not going to declare martial law. He authorized and directed the security in Washington, D.C., to protect Joe Biden’s inauguration. Members of Congress are not going to be arrested, and the pope isn’t either. World leaders are not resigning. If it is an extraordinary claim without evidence, delete it. If you are creating this content, you should be ashamed.

This is especially true if you are a supporter of the president. Descending on Washington, D.C., or creating the content that makes people believe Joe Biden will not actually be the president next Wednesday does nothing but discredit President Trump and everyone else who supported his policy agenda. The political establishment wants the agenda that puts Americans’ safety, security, and prosperity first to be completely discredited, and this continued nonsense is helping them do that. Another protest gone wrong will kill the movement for good even inside the Republican Party.

So, stay home. Start to think about how you can educate people about how energy independence benefits them. Or why school choice matters. Perhaps why we need to maintain a tough stance with China and stop the endless wars. Figure out how to bring more people along with the ideas President Trump brought to the table and focus on winning the House and taking back the Senate in 2022. We are in a war of ideas, not a revolution, so start playing on the right field.