The National Guard disputed rumors that some troops deployed to secure the inauguration intentionally turned their back on President Biden as his motorcade passed through Washington, D.C.
“These National Guardsmen were on duty with a mission to protect the president against potential threats,” Capt. Tinashe Machona, a spokeswoman for the D.C. National Guard, told Stars and Stripes. “Some are facing out to ensure the safety of all.”
A 21-second video titled “Military turns back to Joe Biden’s motorcade” has amassed over 2 million views as some theorized the move to turn their backs was an intentional act of disrespect by the troops.
“Claim is @joeBiden banished troops in DC to parking garage when they weren’t on guard b/c he felt the troops had disrespected him by turning their backs on him,” wrote Crime Prevention Research Center President John Lott Jr. on Twitter. “Others say they were facing out away from the entire motorcade b/c any threat to it would come from outside the road.”
Lott also shared the video, which shows troops facing various directions as Biden’s motorcade passed by, with the first formation shown appearing to stand at attention facing the motorcade while later groups of troops are shown either facing away from the motorcade or facing both directions.
Claim is @joeBiden banished troops in DC to parking garage when they weren’t on guard b/c he felt the troops had disrespected him by turning their backs on him.
Others say they were facing out away from the entire motorcade b/c any threat to it would come from outside the road. https://t.co/Gxmom95Pym— John R Lott Jr. (@JohnRLottJr) January 24, 2021
The original uploader of the video on YouTube later acknowledged the title “Military turns back to Joe Biden’s motorcade” was misleading.
“In hindsight, I would’ve been slightly more careful with the title,” the person said.
Roughly 26,000 National Guard troops were in the nation’s capital to augment the security of local police after a mob of former President Donald Trump’s supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol building in an attempt to protest the certification of Biden’s election victory.
Some of the troops were at the center of a different controversy after it was revealed that a group of them had been forced to take their break in an unheated parking garage near the Capitol, causing some governors to threaten to pull their troops home if they continued to receive that treatment.
“They’re soldiers, they’re not Nancy Pelosi’s servants,” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said during an appearance on Fox and Friends on Friday morning. “This is a half-cocked mission at this point, and I think the appropriate thing is to bring them home.”
The troops were eventually moved back to the Capitol, a National Guard spokesperson said.
With no violence or protests interrupting the inauguration, thousands of troops are expected to end their Washington, D.C., deployment over the next 10 days.
