Democratic D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser has asked President Donald Trump and various federal agencies for help preparing for the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden following a riot at the U.S. Capitol Jan. 6.
Bowser asked Trump to declare a pre-emergency disaster for Washington, a measure that was taken before former President Barack Obama’s inauguration in 2009, during a press conference Monday. She also sent a letter to the Department of Homeland Security requesting to “extend the National Special Security Event period” to run from Jan. 11 through Jan. 24
“While we understand that there is an immediate threat to our democracy we also know that there is imminent hope and we will get through this period,” Bowser said. We also know that Trumpism won’t die on January 20, but our American values and our DC values are stronger than one extreme ideology. We will overcome this extremism together.”
Mayor Muriel Bowser on Biden Inauguration: “Our goals right now are to encourage Americans to participate virtually and to protect the District of Columbia from a repeat of the violent insurrection experienced at the Capitol and its grounds on January the 6th.” pic.twitter.com/ISzKdsqrkQ
— The Hill (@thehill) January 12, 2021
Bowser asked the FBI to provide an intelligence and threat briefing daily from Jan. 11 through Jan. 24 and for the Secretary of the Department of the Interior to cancel all public gathering permits and deny any new applications for permits between Jan. 11 and Jan. 24.
“The district is also urging the Department of Homeland Security to coordinate with the Department of Defense and the Department of Justice, the United States Congress, and the United States Supreme Court to establish a security and federal force deployment plan for all federal property, which will ensure the Metropolitan Police Department’s (MPD) ability to focus on its local mission in the District’s eight wards.”
She said these measures are “necessary because the inauguration poses several unprecedented challenges that exceed the scope of our traditional planning processes ” due to COVID-19 and the “domestic terror attack” on the Capitol building. Bowser also asked Americans to participate in inauguration events virtually and to not come to Washington on Jan. 20.
Bowser said that only the president can arm any National Guard troops deployed to Washington and confirmed that the president can commandeer the MPD in an emergency.
MPD officers are still available to respond to calls in any neighborhood while others responded to the riot at the Capitol and they will be able to do the same around Jan. 20, MPD Chief Robert Contee said Monday. He added that the MPD responded to the Capitol within minutes of receiving the call from the Capitol Police.
At least 56 MPD officers were injured during the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, according to Contee. “Our officers were in a fight not just for their lives, but for the democracy of this country,” he said.
“I have talked to officers who have done two tours in Iraq and said that this was scarier to them than their time in combat,” Contee said. (RELATED: Capitol Police Officer Dies Days After Riot, Reports Allege Suicide)
Indoor dining will remain closed in Washington in accordance with the public safety emergency, according to Bowser.
The MPD did not respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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