Pentagon Approves National Guard Request as Trucker Convoys Head to D.C.
Ahead of President Biden’s State of the Union address, the nation’s capital is bracing for trucker protests like those that paralyzed Canada’s capital city in recent weeks
The Pentagon has approved a request to deploy hundreds of National Guard members to the nation’s capital as trucker protests mimicking the Canadian “Freedom Convoy” are expected in the area in the coming days.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin late Tuesday approved the deployment of 700 unarmed National Guard troops, according to the Associated Press, following a request from the U.S. Capitol Police and local government agencies. Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said in a statement Tuesday that the agencies had asked for National Guard personnel to “provide support at traffic control points in and around the District to help the USCP and DC government address potential challenges stemming from possible disruptions at key traffic arteries.”
The development comes ahead of President Joe Biden’s March 1 State of the Union address, against which threats of trucker protests like those that paralyzed Canada’s capital city in recent weeks have been circulating online. D.C. sent an alert to residents Tuesday saying demonstrations could impact the area “in the weeks ahead.”
Canada since late last month saw a surge in demonstrations with a seemingly American flair, as Canadians outraged with a recently imposed coronavirus vaccine mandate for truckers crossing the U.S.-Canada border have led to protests throughout the country.
Earlier this month, as a Canadian trucker convoy blockaded a vital supply route between the U.S. and its northern neighbor, the Department of Homeland Security warned its law enforcement partners that protests similar to those in Canada could come to the U.S., posing a threat to the Super Bowl or Biden’s State of the Union address.
Among the planned protests is one slated to arrive on the Capital Beltway on Wednesday. One of its organizers, speaking to local Fox affiliate WTTG-TV, equated the impact of protesting on the interstate that surrounds the nation’s capital to the squeezing of a boa constrictor snake. But the extent of the protest remains unclear.
Another group, called the “People’s Convoy,” is set to embark on a 2,500-mile drive to the nation’s capital beginning on Wednesday in Southern California and is slated to arrive in the area on March 5, “but will NOT be going into DC proper,” the group said in a statement.
Like the demonstrations in Canada in recent weeks, the U.S. groups are rallying against COVID-19 restrictions. Some groups, like the People’s Convoy, have made their connection to the Canadian protesters clear, referring to the Canadian demonstrators as “our brave and courageous neighbors to the North – our Canadian brothers and sisters who led the charge.”
The U.S. Capitol Police said Friday that the department is preparing for extra security ahead of Biden’s March 1 address.
“Law enforcement agencies across the National Capital Region are aware of plans for a series of truck convoys arriving in Washington, DC around the time of the State of the Union,” the department said in a statement, adding that it’s “closely coordinating with local, state and federal law enforcement agencies.”
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on Tuesday that the administration is “closely monitoring, closely watching and working with state and local authorities.”
https://www.usnews.com/news/national-news/articles/2022-02-23/pentagon-approves-national-guard-request-as-trucker-convoys-head-to-d-c