Since the first week in January, the Capitol has been protected by an 8-foot fence topped with barbed wire, erected after hundreds of former President Donald Trump’s supporters stormed the building and overwhelmed the police on Jan. 6.
Two months have passed, and many of the rioters have since been arrested and charged. The House impeached Trump for inciting an insurrection, and the Senate acquitted him.
But the fencing remains, along with thousands of National Guard troops called in to respond to the attack and to protect the building during President Biden’s inauguration.
The once-open Capitol campus has been transformed into a fortress and will likely remain so for the foreseeable future.
“It’s not rational,” said Sen. Ron Johnson, a Wisconsin Republican. “I’d say right now we’re overreacting.”
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, told reporters that she’s leaving security decisions up to the Capitol’s top law enforcement officials. They report to her and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.
The Capitol Police have indicated that they want some permanent fencing around the building. This week, they asked the Defense Department to leave the thousands of National Guard troops at the Capitol for an additional two months.
“We should have them here as long as they are needed,” Pelosi said when asked whether the National Guard should remain until May.
Pelosi last month appointed retired Lt. Gen. Russel Honore to conduct a complete security review of the Capitol following the Jan. 6 attack.
That day, violent protesters easily forced their way through metal barricades. They fought their way past the Capitol Police, who were left mostly unprepared and without enough riot gear or manpower. Capitol Police officers waited hours for help after making “frantic” calls to the District of Columbia National Guard, which could not get permission from the Defense Department to deploy to the Capitol.
Honore has said that some National Guard troops could remain permanently at the Capitol.
Honore issued a draft report that called for creating a “quick reaction force” to be on guard 24 hours a day and staffed by either specially trained federal officers or members of the National Guard.
The report calls for hiring another 900 Capitol Police officers and obtaining portable fencing that can be quickly installed during emergencies.
Pelosi said she is anticipating a briefing on the recommendations next week. A supplemental spending measure will be needed to pay for the new security, Pelosi said. The current fencing structure costs $2 million per week.
Pelosi canceled legislative business on March 4 after Capitol Police revealed a possible plot by right-wing militias to attack the Capitol.
March 4 had served as the day for the presidential inauguration until 1933, and some QAnon followers allegedly believed that Trump, who lost the election, would be sworn into office on the date.
Despite the threat, there were no incidents at the Capitol, which remained ringed with the National Guard and miles of barbed wire fencing.
Democrats have largely defended the additional security, while Republicans are demanding that Democrats who run both chambers return the Capitol to the open campus that has stood in Washington for more than 200 years.
The Washington, D.C., government and outside organizations are urging House and Senate leaders to get rid of the fencing, which they say shuts out tourists and the public who have a right to access the Capitol.
A group of 20 organizations wrote to congressional leaders last month, calling on them to reject permanent fencing around the Capitol.
“Militarizing our Capitol is a sign of weakness and a hallmark of authoritarian countries,” wrote the group, which included Demand Progress and the Lincoln Network. “It is an overreaction based upon a miscalculation of how to address the dangers we face. We must do better.”
