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Military chiefs condemn 'sedition and insurrection' in the Capitol

2021-01-13T08:52:47.398Z


America's top military leaders condemned the violent invasion of the Capitol by Trump supporters last week.


Second attack on Capitol could be planning 2:41

(CNN) - America's

top military leaders condemned the violent invasion of the Capitol last week and reminded members of the military of their obligation to uphold and defend the Constitution and reject extremism.

They did so in a statement underscoring the unprecedented challenges facing the country after the January 6 attempted insurrection by supporters of President Donald Trump.

“We witnessed actions within the Capitol building that are incompatible with the rule of law.

The rights to freedom of expression and assembly do not give anyone the right to resort to violence, sedition and insurrection, "says the statement, released Tuesday and signed by the US's highest-ranking general, Mark Milley. , and the entire Joint Chiefs of Staff, which is made up of the heads of each military branch.

The communiqué was signed by the US's highest ranking general, Mark Milley, and the entire Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The extraordinary statement underscores the magnitude of the challenge and the depth of uncertainty and concern in Washington, where officials from across the U.S. security system are struggling to deal with the aftermath of the chaos on Capitol Hill and across the country, as all 50 states prepare for possible acts of violence.

  • Two people linked to the Capitol uprising are formally charged, including a man who allegedly had bombs

At the same time, federal officials are defining the best way to protect lawmakers at the seat of American democracy, as more information comes to light about plans by Trump supporters to stage another attack and disrupt the takeover. Possession of President-elect Joe Biden.

These efforts are underway across all law enforcement agencies at the federal and local levels as the Washington political drama continues to unfold.

The House of Representatives is expected to vote on Trump's second impeachment trial on Wednesday, as significant cracks begin to appear in Republican support for the president.

Trump, for his part, insisted Tuesday that he believes he has no responsibility for the insurrection carried out by his supporters and has not yet explicitly asked them to refrain from launching another assault on the Capitol.

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As Washington prepares for any possibility, officials revealed security efforts ranging from immediate and concrete steps by the U.S. Capitol Police, which announced road closures around the Capitol that will last indefinitely, to a huge Justice Department forensic effort to reconstruct the events of January 6 and identify those responsible for the crimes committed that day.

Federal investigators told reporters Tuesday that the scope and scale of that broad investigation is unprecedented in the history of the FBI and the Department of Justice and that it is generating an image of the insurrection that will "shock" people.

That work is going on even as researchers say they are also focused on preventing future attacks.

'Scary'

Lawmakers, deeply affected by the hours of violence last week, are discussing steps to protect themselves, citing Republican members who may have cooperated or communicated with agitators and other Republican colleagues who bring arms to Capitol Hill against the regulations.

Legislators attacked could define Trump's political future 4:33

Capitol Police installed metal detectors outside the House room beginning Tuesday afternoon and all House members, staff and attendees will have to pass through them, an aide told CNN and a source from the US Capitol Police

Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen came out of an inaugural senators' security briefing to tell CNN that the number of people they anticipate arriving in Washington next week and the potential for them to be violent, particularly militia extremists among them , it's frightening".

Van Hollen told CNN that he is "confident" that "everyone will be fully prepared" and that the security arrangements in place for the event amount to "a whole government approach.

They are taking up everything we have to make sure we have a successful opening in the moment. "

Administration officials from across the government were scheduled to meet Tuesday afternoon for a major interagency meeting on "requirements," to discuss in depth security requirements for the inauguration and concerns that some events in Washington could become violent, several senior defense officials told CNN.

  • Armed pro-Trump extremists plan to surround Capitol before Biden's inauguration, lawmaker says

The statement on Tuesday of the Joint Chiefs of Staff reminding the troops of their obligation to defend the Constitution is a disturbing indication of their concern: military leaders seek, whenever possible, to avoid taking positions that may have political overtones.

But military leaders felt it was important to make a statement given the seriousness of the events surrounding the inauguration, CNN learned.

“As members of the military, we must embody the values ​​and ideals of the nation.

We support and defend the Constitution.

Any act that interrupts the constitutional process not only goes against our traditions, values ​​and oaths;

It is against the law, ”the statement said.

The statement referred to the certification of the election by Congress and said: "President-elect Biden will take office and become our 46th Commander-in-Chief."

'There is no room for extremism'

The statement comes as the military launches an effort to examine whether some in the ranks sympathize with the extremist goals and beliefs propagated by some Trump supporters.

CNN learned that the US Army is working with the Secret Service to determine if there are soldiers, who will be part of the National Guard contingent that will provide security at Biden's inauguration, that require an additional background investigation.

The Washington National Guard is also providing additional training to service members as they arrive in the capital to underscore that if they see or hear something that is inappropriate, they should report it to their chain of command, an Army spokesman said in a written statement to CNN.

"There is no room for extremism in the military and we will investigate each report individually and take appropriate action," the spokesman said.

"The military is committed to working closely with the FBI in identifying the individuals who participated in the violent attack on the Capitol to determine if the individuals have any connection to the military," the statement said, adding that any type of activity that "involves violence, civil disobedience, or a breach of the peace" can be sanctioned under the Uniform Code of Military Justice or under state and federal law.

Current Department of Defense policy requires all members of the military to be trained annually under a program that requires department personnel to report "any information about known or suspected extremist behavior that could be a threat to the department or the United States." says the statement.

How to deal with Trump supporters, according to political scientist 1:04

FBI and Justice Department officials compared their January 6 investigation to terrorism investigations.

"People are going to be shocked by some of the egregious contacts that occurred on Capitol Hill," Acting Attorney General Michael Sherwin told a news conference on Tuesday, referring to the agitators' attacks on police officers. the federal and Washington police.

So the image is going to be built.

I think there are a lot of misconceptions about what happened inside the Capitol, and I think it will be put under a laser eye for weeks and days to come. "

"The FBI is quite familiar with complex, large-scale investigations… we are up to the challenge," said Steven D'Antuono, assistant director of the FBI's Washington field office.

Sherwin echoed that point, telling reporters: "The scope and scale of the investigation of these cases is unprecedented, not only in the history of the FBI, but probably in the history of the Department of Justice."

"The Capitol grounds outside and inside are essentially a crime scene," he said.

"It will not be resolved in the next few months," he added.

Sherwin said he has given his prosecutors orders to pursue major conspiracy and sedition cases related to the insurrection.

Jake Tapper, Daniella Diaz, Manu Raju, Ryan Nobles, Evan Perez, Shimon Prokupecz, and Zachary Cohen contributed to this report.

Capitol US Army

Source: cnnespanol

All news articles on 2021-01-13

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