"Usually the Federal Government comes in to back up local law enforcement. On January 6th, local law enforcement came to the rescue of the Federal Government." Washington DC Chief of Police
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I did not know many things about January 6th but I always assumed when the then POTUS told people to go home - the crowd did. That's not what happened. They kept attacking, as violent as ever, but law enforcement from VA, MD, and NJ swept in and dispersed the crowd. Regular police officers faced that huge crowd and relieved the few hundred that had battled them for hours.
I definitely just recommend watching this documentary. It uses extensive actual footage and interviews the D. C. Chief of Police, a D. C. Policeman (himself a former Guardsman), a Capitol policewoman, a photographer in the crowd, a congressman, and a Congressional Staffer (running with the six theme). There is almost no political commentary. Just what law enforcement and our Congress faced. Regardless of what one thinks about the vote - I have no doubt law enforcement in the Capitol saved many lives that day. There were people in that mob ready to kill Congressmen and women.
We can get locked into pointing fingers on who should have done what and chain of command. For the record , I learned the nearby Guardsmen were unarmed and had no body armor. So they really couldn't have been used. But all I can say is I am grateful for the heroes of the day and that local law enforcement stepped into the breach. And I hope in the future we will be as fast against a domestic threat as we would be for a foreign one.
We should make sure that nothing like that ever happens again.
I definitely just recommend watching this documentary. It uses extensive actual footage and interviews the D. C. Chief of Police, a D. C. Policeman (himself a former Guardsman), a Capitol policewoman, a photographer in the crowd, a congressman, and a Congressional Staffer (running with the six theme). There is almost no political commentary. Just what law enforcement and our Congress faced. Regardless of what one thinks about the vote - I have no doubt law enforcement in the Capitol saved many lives that day. There were people in that mob ready to kill Congressmen and women.
We can get locked into pointing fingers on who should have done what and chain of command. For the record , I learned the nearby Guardsmen were unarmed and had no body armor. So they really couldn't have been used. But all I can say is I am grateful for the heroes of the day and that local law enforcement stepped into the breach. And I hope in the future we will be as fast against a domestic threat as we would be for a foreign one.
We should make sure that nothing like that ever happens again.