Authorities ignored intelligence that MAGA fans would storm Capitol on January 06
By Harps Johal
Breakdown
- Online chatter by MAGA fans planning the Capitol attack ignored by authorities
- Senate investigation into the attack released on Tuesday
- Failure from Intelligence agencies to adequately respond to the threat or plan countermeasures
- Capitol Police were left undermanned and without clear communication during the riot
Pollemix News
June 08, 2021
The US Senate released a report into the January 06 Capitol riot on Tuesday detailing a raft of failures both on the day of and prior to the attack. The report showed that several branches of US intelligence were aware of online chatter among MAGA supporters discussing plans to assault the Capitol but failed to act.
As a result, Police were left flat-footed and order quickly broke down once rioters had breached the Capitol. President Trump’s speech encouraging supporters to march to the Capitol was also mentioned in the report, however, he was not blamed for the mayhem that ensued. The report uncovered several damning indictments of the intelligence failures that led to the chaos:
- Police officers on the scene were also left without riot gear or helmets as they were locked in a bus nearby
- Capitol Police failed to disclose that maps of the tunnel system under the Capitol building were being shared online
- National Guard troops did not arrive on the scene until 3 hours after the attack began
The bipartisan report detailed a high level of online chatter threatening the attack on pro-Trump websites such as Breitbart. One comment called for attendees to arm themselves, saying “If a million patriots who up bristling with AR’s, just how brave do you think they’ll be when it comes to enforcing their unconstitutional laws? Don’t cuck out.”
Despite the threats, intelligence agencies failed to recommend increasing security on the day. As a result, the Capitol Police were woefully undermanned once the attack began and failed to receive proper direction from leadership. The report also made several recommendations to prevent future assaults:
- Firstly review and evaluate handling of open-source information, such as social media and containing threats of violence
- Then develop standing ‘concept of operation’ scenarios and contingency plans for responding quickly to civil disturbance and terrorism incidents
- Also, ensure that Mutual Aid Agreements among federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies are in place
Verdict
The report comes in the aftermath of a failed Senate vote to launch a more comprehensive inquiry into the riot. With Republicans likely to stonewall any further investigations this report will have to suffice. Nevertheless, it gives a damning indictment of several law enforcement agencies to recognize and respond to threats of violence. Therefore, it will be interesting to see whether their will be bipartisan agreement on many of the changes recommended in the report.
POLL: Who was responsible for the January 06 Capitol Riot?
Tags: Trump, Capitol Riot, Senate,
