By Tom Squitieri, Talk Media News
WASHINGTON — The acting U.S. Capitol Police Chief Yogananda Pittman admitted Tuesday that her department knew there was a “strong potential for violence” targeting Congress on January 6, but did not take appropriate steps to prevent it.
Her admission came the same day that Maj. Gen. William Walker, the commanding general of the D.C. National Guard, said the Pentagon restricted his authority ahead of the Capitol riot, which meant he could not immediately deploy troops when the Capitol Police chief called asking for help as rioters were about to breach the building.
“All military commanders normally have immediate response authority to protect property, life, and in my case, federal functions — federal property and life,” Walker told the Washington Post. “But in this instance, I did not have that authority.”
A Pentagon timeline of events says it took around 90 minutes to approve the Guard’s deployment on January 6 after requests were made by Capitol Police and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser. Independent timelines show longer delays.
Accusations and finger-pointing continue among the Pentagon Capitol police, DC police, and others as to who was to blame for the inept preparations and response to what has become clear was a calculated and planned attack on the Capitol.
“We knew there was a strong potential for violence and that Congress was the target,” Pittman said. She said the “People’s House” was designed to be open and welcoming to visitors, and because of this, it was difficult to fortify.
“It was only by pure dumb luck that elected officials, staffers, and more Capitol policemen were not killed,” Rep. Matt Cartwright, a Pennsylvania Democrat, told CNN after he and other members of Congress were briefed by Pittman. He said what others have previously said, that “people were more worried about optics more than they were worried about security.”
Rep. Kay Granger, R-Texas, also called out the failure to act on intelligence that could have prevented the attack.
“While many questions remain, it is clear that the failure was not due to a lack of intelligence, but rather a failure to properly act on this intelligence. This is unacceptable and left our law enforcement men and women on the ground unprepared for the danger they would face. These heroes not only deserve our gratitude for successfully keeping Members and staff safe, they deserve answers and a commitment to do better,” Granger said in a statement.
